Cold Metal
by Rickysio
Summary: Watch what happens, when Naruto breaks past his limits, and achieves a level of power never seen before. Nothing is what it seems, and nothing is what it be. Epic AU NarutoXHarem Rating for occasional coarse language. On Hiatus for Examinations/School.
1. Chapter 0 : Possibility,Glimpse

Chapter Zero : Possibility/Glimpse.

"Hokage-sama!" The ANBU panted, breaking through double doors that lead to the Hokage's office. The two oak doors swung and crashed against the plaster wall, before the screws couldn't hold them in and the entire contraption crashed to the ground sonorously. "Oto-nins are currently setting up camp at the Valley of the End!"

"Calm down." The Hokage muttered. With the Hokage's hat perched on his head, and with the sun filtering through from the back, it was impossible to discern the face of the Hokage, which made for an imposing pose. "What's our current strength?"

"There's about 100 Jounins and Tokubetsu Jounins left, 350 Chuunin, 500 Genins and 100 ANBU left, Hokage-sama." The secretary replied, ever efficient, emerging from the ruins of the double doors. "And about twice the above numbers are in hospital."

"How many Oto-nins are there?" The Hokage asked, . "And get someone to fix those doors, Shirai-chan. Charge it to maintenance."

"About one thousand Hokage-sama. Most of them are Chuunin and above." The ANBU replied. "There's an additional 500 samurai and ronin there too, two hundred yari mushas amongst them." (Yari Musha Spear Warrior.)

"Very well." The Hokage rose from his seat, discarding his ceremonial hat, placing it in the second drawer. The sun, entering from the window, shone on the blond hair of the Hokage. "I'll take care of them. Fortify the defences and make sure no Oto-nins get through the walls. Assign Team 3 as my clean-up. Tell them to meet me at the Hokage's Monument's top."

"Hai, Hokage-sama!" The ANBU saluted his leader as the man disappeared, leaving nothing but a discarded Hokage's robe in his still-warm seat.

* * *

"Team 3 reporting, Hokage-sama!" The Jounin instructor saluted.

"There's no need to be formal, Kure-chan." The Hokage dismissed. "After all, you're my wife."

"One of many." Yuuhi Kurenai joked. "One of god knows how many."

"It's only a few." The Hokage mumbled, blushing slightly. The Hokage was dressed like a normal Jounin, except for the presence of a sheathed katana hanging from the back, and an unusually long tantō with a 50cm blade horizontally strapped to his back. The green jacket was black instead, with six scroll holders per side, and he had his kunai and shuriken holsters strapped to his leg, with his explosives pouch hanging off his belt to the back, and there was a roll of all purpose wire hanging on a carabineer, with the wire threaded through the hole with a safety blade mounted, ready for quick use. There were also seals on the fingerless gloves, and the black metal plates shone faintly in the sun. His sandals had a metallic sheen on them, indicating the hidden plates.

"A few huh, Hokage-sama?" Kurenai laughed. "So a harem's a few."

"It's only like, four, you know?" The Hokage protested. "I could have taken twenty but I didn't!"

"Oh, so you're showing off now huh, Hokage-sama?" Kurenai teased.

"Damn it! Why does everything I say gets twisted by you?!" The Hokage groaned. "Anyway, let's go before them Oto-nins run away."

"Sure, Naru-kun."

* * *

"Sensei, why are there only five people taking out a thousand five hundred? We are outnumbered three hundred to one." Daichirou Yamanada, a Chuunin, whispered to his team leader, Yuuhi Kurenai.

"Well, it's more of one person, Naru-kun, taking out about a thousand five hundred. We only take care of the stragglers." Kurenai replied. "That's what meant by clean up. We deal with the stragglers that manage to escape. Even so, it's rather rare for it to happen."

"But isn't it suicide?" Yamanada whispered urgently. "It's insane to go against way superior numbers, even if he is our Kage!"

"You're new, aren't you?" Tosurei Kijiro crept up near them. "The Taijutsu expert."

"Yeah." Yamanada replied.

"What are you most proud of in your Taijutsu?" Kijiro asked.

"My speed and power." Yamanada puffed out his chest in pride. "No one could beat me, not even Gai-sensei."

"Of course, you were naturally gifted in that area." Kijiro conceded. "But, if you keep your eyes open, you'll be able to see the true speed and power. Watch closely."

They could see the silhouette of their Kage standing proudly in front of the camp, his hands blazing through hand seals faster than anyone they had ever seen.

"Water : 32.543 percent, Earth : 67.457 percent, Mokuton : Tajuu Yari!" (Wood Release : Many spears.)

The shout woke the Oto soldiers, and many of them leapt out of their tents, fully dressed and weapons drawn, the ominous metal glinting in the moonlight, some still caked with blood, lending it a rather oily glow. "A fool approaches." The Oto-nins laughed. "Is Konoha so low on man power that they have to send only one person against all of us?!"

The ground rumbled, and around the camp, a ridiculously huge amount of spears rose from the ground, all aimed at the Oto-nins.

"Hyuk! What a lousy shinobi! His technique missed us completely! What a joke!"

"Oh no. I'm afraid you're mistaken." Naruto grinned. "It's meant to keep you in."

"Keep us in? Hah!" The Oto-nins jeered, while a few already charged at him.

Without skipping a beat, Naruto broke the necks of the Jounins that had charged at him so quickly, that their momentum carried on and they crashed behind him. "Yes, it is."

Suddenly, a few shinobi's heads popped off, and when they turned to look at Naruto, they noticed a glistening thread in his hands. "Who's next?"

"So... so fast!" Yamanada gasped. "I can't even see him moving!"

Naruto disappeared in a gust of smoke, while the Oto nins banded together for more protection. "Katon : Dai..."

A sudden kunai to the head took out the shinobi. Not only did it do that, the kunai broke through the skull and took out another five, before its momentum was halted by an opposing kunai. Even so, the opposing kunai split into two and the three clanged to the ground. "Feh, you weaklings." Naruto grunted. "I guess I'll finish this quickly."

"If you can!" One of the more braver Oto-nins spoke.

"Oh, I can." Naruto gave a noncommittal grunt. "By the time this shuriken falls, you all will be gone."

Throwing the shuriken into the air, there was a sudden loud boom and across the battlefield, a massacre was taking place. Numbers dwindled down exponentially, and all the cleanup crew could see were after images of their Hokage dealing with the enemy swiftly and efficiently, like a well oiled killing machine. The perfect killing machine.

Bodies fell, some missing heads, some with their own weapons turned against them. Several samurai had died, blood flowing down their mouths, dead from a powerful punch that had shattered their armour and sent the fragments into the body which it was supposed to protect. Some of them had blood flowing from their eyes, by a crushing blow to the back of the head, caving the skull in.

"Is this the best Hebi-teme has to offer? He certainly has been slacking off." Naruto drawled, voice normal, as though he was sitting down in a cafe chatting about the weather with some friends, even as he ended multiple lives. "I guess that's rather sad."

"How dare you..." A Sound Chuunin yelled, about to defend his Kage, when he died from a Yari taken from a samurai stuffed down his throat.

"Mada mada dana, young one." Naruto laughed. "Your leader can even swallow a scroll and vomit a sword, so I guess he taught you all nothing."

"Bullshi..." A Yari to the head took care of the charging samurai, the head crest of his armour folding inwards along with the Yari, which pinned the man to the ground.

"Oh, don't you know, he goes for the young ones." Naruto shrugged, sighing. "And boys, no less. It's rather shameful for someone like him to be a former shinobi of my village."

"Don't you insult Orochimaru-sama!" A Jounin roared, hands blazing through seals.

"Pfft." Naruto muttered, throwing a shield at the Jounin forcefully, dislocating both wrists and rendering the hand useless and unable to use jutsus. "It's the truth, and nothing's gonna stop me from revealing them"

It certainly seemed off, the laid back tone of voice being used in such a bloody place. But the owner was the most powerful Kage ever to take up the mantle, so it wasn't really surprising, as the Rokudaime Hokage brutally decimated the Oto-nin. "Tajuu Kunai Kage Bushin!" A Jounin roared, and a thousand kunai blitzed the Hokage. (Roughly Many Kunai Shadow Clone Technique.)

"Finally, someone with skills." Naruto laughed. "But too bad it's worth nothing in front of me."

"Fuuton : Kaze no Hakaiteki!" Another sound Jounin roared. (Wind release : Wind of Destruction/Destructive Wind.)

"Pfft." Naruto snorted. "Kabuto, you of all people should know that wind attacks are useless against me."

Moving his hands quickly, and in the opposing direction of the wind's spin, Naruto negated the strong wind blowing towards him. "After all, wind's my dominant affinity."

"Tch." Kabuto cursed. "But I know your weakness, Naruto-chan."

"What is it, Kabuto?" Naruto laughed scornfully. "Mr Traitor?"

Kabuto never received the chance to reply, as his throat was forcefully ripped out, and he gave of a gurgling from choking on his blood. "It's an easy death for you, but I've no time to play." Naruto muttered.

"You forgot about my bloodline fool!" Kabuto gave a primal roar, and his eyes flashed silver as his flesh knitted back together. "And you shall pay for this!"

"Oh really?" Naruto taunted, letting Kabuto's attack connect with his body. "What a weak punch. Is this your best?"

"Ku ku ku ku ku..." Kabuto laughed. "You have already been infected with my Dokuyaku no Orochi. Your defence is pathatic!"

"And I'm supposed to suffer intense pain for the next twenty four hours while remaining fully aware and my senses boosted so much that I'm supposed to keep screaming until I die?" Naruto's eyebrows rose. "What naivety. I do admit you got my weakness down to a T, but it's because I have no need for defence at all."

"How... how are you not..." Kabuto wheezed, as he felt the Hokage's hands go through his chest. "Affected..."

"There's something called talent Kabuto." Naruto spoke emotionlessly. "Something I have and you lack, Kabuto. That and Kage Bushins, fool."

"I guess I should end this quickly." Naruto noted to himself, as his eyes tracked the shuriken, which was starting to descent.

Disappearing in a blur of speed, only leaving after images behind, Naruto quickly finished off most of the non shinobi's, before he engaged the shinobi. Hand holding a huge number of Yari, he threw them quickly, neatly, and violently. Catching the front row and the second off guard, the unfortunate shinobi became kebabs, and the rest had their weapons out in defence.

Naruto laughed. "You think these worthless pieces of metal can stop me?"

Moving in a burst of speed, all the Jounins could see were a slight blur and the figure of the Hokage shaking slightly, before the clanging of metal on the ground reached their ears. "And now you don't even have those scrap metals! Isn't it fun? Come on, impress me!"

The last thing most of the shinobi there saw was the maniacal grin of the Hokage, hand grabbing a shining blade.

One of the remaining Chuunins had the common sense to run, and for this he survived the second attack.

"Oh no, you don't escape." Naruto berated, as though he was a teacher and the Oto-nin was an unrepentant child, wagging his finger at the escaping ninja for good measure. "No one escapes from Uzumaki no Shikyou." (Whirlpool of Death.)

Barely looking backwards, the Hokage threw a kunai in a back handed throw. The kunai caught the dropping shuriken, and impacted on the back of the head of the last Chuunin.

"Hey Team 3." The Hokage yelled. "Get your ass off the floor and clean up!"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The team acknowledged, moving quickly to scour the bodies for any important documents or information that might prove vital and offer an insight into Oto's actions.

"Just for the record Naru-chan," Kurenai whispered, while leaping past the Hokage. "If you speak to me again in that tone you'll sleep on the couch. Alone."

"Eep!" The Hokage squealed.

End of Chapter Zero.

A/N : A different type of beginning, and as the title states, it's only a glimpse into the future, which may or may not exist, but there stuff that's gonna stay, like the harem (Naruto : Hey! It's not a harem!) and the Konoha-Oto war.

Naruto's ability to use the chakra by percentages will be explained when the time comes.

Also, his confirmed harem members (Naruto : OI!) are Haku, Kurenai, Yuugito (Nibi Container), and Kazahana Koyuki. Kyuubi, Mitarashi Anko, Tayuya (Sound Genin), Inuzuka Hana may or may not be included. Hinata, Ino, Sakura, Tsunade, Yuugao, Kin, and Karin will not be included.


	2. Chapter 1: Alpha,Omega

Chapter One : Alpha/Omega

A child, barely four, stumbled down the streets, dressed in slightly tattered clothes, and clearly oversized for him. His foot caught on the hem of the pants and he tripped, crashing into a man. "Get off me demon!" The man snarled, kicking his foot up, along with the kid.

The wall held, but the kid's spine couldn't. Grunting in pain, Uzumaki Naruto tensed as he felt something go out of his body and started fixing his spine. The open flesh started to knit itself together, and with a slight burn on the floor the flesh returned to normal. Giving a slight grunt, he picked himself off the floor, and rolled up his pants for the umpteenth time.

He snorted to himself as he saw a parent pick up her wailing dark haired child, who was wearing a dark blue open necked shirt, with a fan logo displayed prominently. _Uchiha_. Naruto thought darkly. _The fuckers that tried to kill me._

For a boy his age, he already possessed the vocabulary of an adult and could converse fluently and coherently, but had soon learnt that acting dumb and like a tramp would grant himself a higher rate of survival. He didn't need to give the villagers another reason to kill the "Demon."

And thus he took on the mask of idiocy, which he only discarded in front of those he regarded as friends, like the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Juzou, and the pervert nin duo, as Naruto used to tease Hatake Kakashi and Tousakusha Jiraiya. It was easy to tease Kakashi for his habit of reading Icha Icha, and Jiraiya due to his last name and comedic self proclamations and poses that always ended with the klutz of a Sannin on the floor after losing his balance.

Those three were the only ones he trusted, besides that ramen vendor Ichiraku and his daughter. There were a bunch of trust worthy weapons and clothes dealers Sarutobi had introduced, but they were merely customer-storekeeper relationships, not as friends.

Quickly moving out of range in case any villager got into the "Beat/Punch/Smack/Kick/Bruise/Attack/Slice Naruto" mood and make a move on him, the Uzumaki hid himself in the shadows on an alley. Watching the man who kicked him huff and puff on the spot, before cleaning his pants and moving off rather angrily, Naruto was almost compelled to report the man to Sarutobi, but disregarded the notion.

Moving quickly for one his age, he made his way back to the apartment he had requested from Sarutobi. Unlocking the door, he pumped some of his chakra into the doorknob prior to turning it. The knob flashed dimly once and the outlines of a seal could faintly be seen. _Gotta thank Ero-sennin for this. _Naruto chucked. _Ero no Sharigan too. _

Wringing the knob, he entered his sparsely furnished room, with a pile of books in a corner and several old clothes lying around. _It's not laundry day yet right... Damn, it is. Better hurry._

Quickly throwing the clothes he was wearing into the pile, he donned a pair of shorts and with the pile, made his way to the bathroom, hopefully able to finish washing his clothes before the Sannin popped over to do a light Katon Jutsu for him to dry his clothes. And hopefully that aforementioned super pervert will stop trying to make his place resemble an Icha Icha fan's. He'll have about a month's worth of fire wood, though.

Maybe he should accept. But then who knows when that Hatake might choose to come and make a mountain out of the molehill, alerting the entire village that the Demon Brat had the entire up-to-date set of Icha Icha, then he'll have to listen to Sarutobi's rather bland, dry, boring, and grating speech, and then confiscate the books before secretly adding them to his own collection. Ah, mustn't forget all that dry smoke too. He should refuse, yeah.

The sound of someone falling down brought him out of his thoughts, and along with it, the last of the laundry. "God damn it!" He heard the voice of the toad Sannin swear. "Why can I never finish a pose successfully?!"

"It's because you suck." Another voice deadpanned. _The Ero-Ero brothers? _Naruto thought. _What is this, the gathering of the mega perverts (excluding me, of course.), in my apartment?_

"Ah." Naruto muttered. "Done. Now will you two Ero-Ero brothers stop fooling around and trashing up my apartment."

"And there's the adult in a child's body." Kakashi whispered to Jiraiya. "How do you think we should introduce him to the wondrous world of Icha Icha?"

"Excuse me Hatake-san." Naruto muttered, a tick forming. "But I can hear you from here, and I don't want to be on the receiving end of Sarutobi-jiisan's lectures again."

"It's nothing on the path to greatness." Jiraiya grinned. "Enjoy the short shinobi life while you can, Naruto-kun. Unless I should address you as Naruto-chan, of course."

"Is this some sort of blackmail." Naruto muttered, with his left eye twitching. "I've got half a mind to tell Sarutobi-jiisan that you've been attempting to corrupt me."

"That's a place you should never go." Jiraiya wiggled his fingers for emphasis. "That's just low, gaki."

"Oh stuff it." Naruto groaned. "Now help me with my laundry."

"Do you want it rare, half done or well done?" Jiraiya joked. "Or you want a barbeque?"

"I'll give you over to the nice ladies in the baths." Naruto grinned. "Would you like an encore stay in the hospital?"

"Tch." Jiraiya groaned. "You're no fun to make fun off."

When the matter of laundry was settled, the unlikely trio sat down on Naruto's bed to chat. "So what have you been doing again, Ero-Sannin?" Naruto teased.

"Peeping of course!" Jiraiya puffed out his chest in mock pride. "I damn near caught sight of..."

The image the Third Hokage saw when he entered the apartment wasn't really what he expected. "And what are you trying to do again Jiraiya-kun..."

"Err, nothing?" Jiraiya gave a sheepish grin. "Well, it's about time for the next group to go into the baths, so I..."

Getting kicked out by a furious Third Hokage, whose pipe was vibrating up and down so fast that the tobacco stayed in place by inertia, wasn't all the hype it was, as Jiraiya soon found out. "Keep those stuff away from Naruto-kun, you dolt! Have you any idea just how young he is?!"

"20." Jiraiya answered from his sprawled out position on the floor. "A man in a child's body."

"And if you give me one more word on that crap again Jiraiya-kun," The Hokage threatened. "I'll retract your free travel pass."

"Alright alright." Jiraiya sighed. "Just my luck today. Well then, I'm off."

"Well then, on official business Naruto-kun." The Hokage muttered, eyebrows still twitching. "As you know, all children have the chance to enrol in the shinobi academy at five, and you will go through 8 years of training to emerge as fresh Genins."

"So you're here to enrol me in, huh, Saru-jiisan." Naruto interrupted.

"Ah, how did you guess?" Sarutobi smirked.

"If not why would you bother having those forms in your hands." Naruto deadpanned. "And that rather devious look on your face isn't helping either."

"Alright then, I'll just leave this forms here and be sure to drop it into the box in front of the academy by tomorrow." Sarutobi smiled. "I'll be off to fight some more paperwork."

"And you know, Saru-jiisan," Naruto called after the man. "How am I supposed to get there."

"There's a map at the back!" Sarutobi yelled back, before disappearing in a plume of smoke.

"Anyway, there's a mission I'm should be on... three hours ago. See you in a week." Kakashi gave his infamous eye smile before jumping from the window.

"So he's going to use me as the excuse..." Naruto twitched. "Well, I best be filling up these forms."

-Hours Later-

"God damn it!" Naruto swore, just about to toss the damned long form out of the window and out of sight. "Why the fuck is that sonova so long!?"

"It's part and parcel of life, Naruto-kun." A badly bruised and limping Jiraiya stumbled into the apartment.

"Ah, so you got caught again." Naruto muttered.

"There was a Hyuuga there, you know."Jiraiya spat bitterly. "That's cheating. And unfair, too."

"You know, if you did a Kirigakure no Jutsu there it's probably hard for them to see you." Naruto suggested.

"Think before you speak, Naruto-kun." Jiraiya muttered. "They'll be even more aware that someone is there if they see a large area of smoke."

"Ah." Naruto acknowledged. "But you could just do a Henge and get in there."

"A Henge's a Genjutsu gaki." Jiraiya deadpanned. "I'll be dead before I can even see enough."

"Is it?" Naruto blinked in surprise. "Well, when Ero no Sharigan taught me that, it felt rather solid, you know."

"Do it for me once." Jiraiya ordered. "I'm interested by the sound of that."

"Alright. _Henge!_" There was a poof of smoke, and in the place where Naruto once was, there was the Shodaime Hokage.

"Rather decent, but you screwed up on his armour." Jiraiya muttered.

Twitching, the Shodaime punched the white haired Sannin in the stomach violently.

"Oof!" Jiraiya gasped. "You managed to align your fists with the pose of the Shodaime with the skill of a Jounin. Interesting!"

"I _AM _the Shodaime. Rather, I _AM 'possessing' _his body." Naruto grinned. "Try touching me."

Bending over, Jiraiya started prodding the armour, before going up to the hair, the equipment pouches. "It seems solid, but why can't I open these pouches?"

"Cause I don't have the pouches on me. You know, if you took out something it's probably something I have on myself." With a plume of smoke, Naruto was standing there again. "So?"

"It seems that you have developed a new technique..." Jiraiya mumbled. "Or is it because of something else?"

"Has it got to do with the fur ball inside of me?" Naruto asked.

"How did you know?" Jiraiya asked, mildly surprised.

"If you listen to the chatty ones in the village you'll get a clue." Naruto deadpanned. "Not to mention that I've used to been being assaulted the most on the date of Kyuubi's supposed death."

"It may be due to the Kyuubi..." Jiraiya muttered. "Try forcing some chakra into your hand."

Touching Naruto's palm, Jiraiya quickly withdrew his hand, as though he had been scalded. "It really is due to Fur Ball. Touch my palm, then your palm."

"Your palm is warm, but why is my palm so scorching hot?" Naruto questioned, blowing on his digits.

"I guess it has got to do with the potency of your chakra." Jiraiya muttered. "I guess some explanations are in order, then."

"You see, if you take normal chakra to have a potency of level one, youki, which the Bijuu uses, have a potency of around 50. Because you have the most potent Bijuu inside of you, the Kyuubi, your chakra is more potent than normal. Because of the seal, some amount of youki is constantly leaked into your body. As a result, your chakra's more potent than normal people." Jiraiya explained. "And as you can see from the great difference in energy, your chakra's potency right now is about 30."

"Shouldn't it be 50?" Naruto asked.

"No." Jiraiya replied. "Unless there's a whole lot of Youki flowing through you, it'll never reach 50. It's taking the average, you know."

"So..." Naruto's eyebrows rose. "I've got the perfect Henge right here."

"And you could use it to sneak into the springs..." Jiraiya muttered. "Lucky you."

"No!" Naruto yelled, blushing slightly. "I'll be able to move without people noticing me!"

"Bah, every technique unable to be used for peeking is a useless technique!" Jiraiya proclaimed. "Now if only I had the Byakugan..."

"You know that the boards covering the baths are sealed against outside Byakugans, don't you?" Naruto deadpanned. "If they didn't, all those Hyuuga's will probably faint from blood loss."

"Ahh, but normal clothes aren't." Jiraiya spoke. "But you'll only be able to see the chakra pathways because the clothes are too close to the body..."

"You know, if you put that talent in finding ways to peep in your shinobi arts you might be better than Sarutobi-jiisan." Naruto muttered. "You might have even more ladies after you if you spent more time grooming yourself too."

"Really?" Jiraiya gasped. "I must get a personal grooming kit..."

"Just joking." Naruto chuckled. "Cause I'll be the one with ladies after him. Not poor ole toady."

"How dare you!" And with that, the unlikely two spent the rest of the day chasing each other around town, with Jiraiya panting, having spent far too long sitting in a tree peeking instead of training.

"I'll... get... you... for... this!" Jiraiya cursed.

"In a million years Jiraiya-jiisan!" Naruto teased. "Shouldn't you retire? You're too old to continue!"

"I'm only nearly 50 for kami's sake!" Jiraiya cursed.

"You're nearly ten times older than me, you know." Naruto jeered. "Old man."

"Shut up!" Jiraiya protested.

"BE SILENT!" An annoyed villager roared. "I want to read my book in peace!"

"Unless it's Icha Icha, I don't care!" Jiraiya roared. "Icha Icha is the only good book in the universe!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU PERVERTED FREAK!" A woman yelled, and started chasing after the grey haired Sannin, who promptly starting running again.

"Jiraiya-sama." A mildly amused off-duty Jounin smiled. "Chasing after the hero with a woman after him."

"Isn't that what he wanted?" His wife asked, walking alongside him. "A woman?"

"Not a woman after his blood, dear." They both shared a laugh at the expense of the Super Pervert. "Not a Haruno, especially."

* * *

The Hokage stared out of his window, after receiving a report about some ruckus in the marketplace with a white haired man chasing a yellow haired child and a pink haired woman after him. He sighed, cradling his head in his palms. _Can't they just leave me alone instead of adding another stack of paperwork to my load?!_

"Get Inu." The Hokage sighed.

"Hokage-sama, Inu-san's on a mission with his team right now." The ANBU reported.

"Uhh, Tenzou?" The Hokage asked.

"Tenzou-san's off duty." The ANBU reported.

"Fine, I'll go myself." The Hokage answered, disappearing in a burst of smoke.

"What about me..." The ANBU sighed, and walked out of the office with a gloomy aura.

"It's alright ANBU-san." The secretary tried to comfort the unfortunate ANBU, but the ANBU disappeared in a plume of smoke.

* * *

"STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" Sarutobi yelled. "JIRAIYA, AS A SANNIN YOU SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER!"

"But he..." Jiraiya protested, pointing towards where Naruto was standing... WAS indeed, for there was no hyperactive adult-kid hybrid there. "Damn him!"

"Don't you dare sneak away Jiraiya." The Hokage warned. "And you'll pay for all these damaged merchandise due to the little ruckus you were making."

"Yes, Sarutobi-sensei." Jiraiya sighed.

"It's not like you don't have the money." Sarutobi muttered. "I wonder how many zeroes you have in your bank book."

"It's about twenty Saru-sensei!" Jiraiya grinned, patting his teacher on the shoulder like old buddies. "How about it, want in? Loan me your gazing ball and..."

The Toad Sannin was silenced by a quick jab to the neck. "Come out Naruto-kun, and help me bring this gaki away." Reaching out inside the Sannin's cloak, Sarutobi took out Jiraiya's bankbook. "Come out right now Naruto-kun."

"Alright Saru-jiisan." Naruto leapt down from the top of a stall, picking up the white haired Sannin. At least, he tried to, before he collapsed. "You forgot the lightening seal jiisan!"

"Ah, yes." Sarutobi muttered, quickly placing a slip of paper on top of Jiraiya and channelling chakra through the seal, which was transferred onto the Sannin. "It'll wear off in one hour, so be quick."

"Okay, so I'll dunk him in the river! That's settled!" Naruto burst off in a run.

"Take off his scroll before you do that." Sarutobi advised. "It's rather important and not waterproof."

"Of course Saru-jiisan." Naruto replied, shouting backwards. "I'll tell him where to get his bankbook back later!"

"And remember about the form!"

"Hai hai." Naruto dismissed, already off into the distance, where Sarutobi could hear a big splash, a sound of a giggle and then an enraged roar, before he realised that the chase was starting again. "..."

Sarutobi sighed. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

End of Chapter One.


	3. Chapter 2 : Shopping,Meeting

Chapter Two : Shopping/Meeting

There was a series of coded knock on the door, and a sleepy Naruto drug himself out of bed to open the door to allow the postman to give him his letters. "There you go Naruto-kun."

"Thanks, postman-san." Naruto mumbled, rubbing his sleepy eyes. "Let's see... I have my monthly allowance, Icha Icha from Jiraiya, a letter from the academy..."

"Fifty thousand yen? Wow, such an increase. Does entering the academy cost so much?!" Naruto drawled in sarcasm. "And then there's the additional rubbish/fire wood today, and the letter."

"Let's see... Hmm, so it starts on the sixth of July, around two weeks from now, and the equipment list is more than a page. Tch, what a trouble." Naruto groaned. "_Henge!"_

* * *

The person that walked out of the apartment was no longer a kid, but a rather curvaceous girl about 20. _Hnn, let's see how much of a discount and a nose bleed can I get out of Tetsuo-san._

The Uzumaki grinned. Oh yes, it was going to be such a _fine_ day.

"Ah, attend to the customer Jinnai-kun!" The storekeeper shouted to his assistant, who was running out of the storage room. "Coming, boss!"

"I'm getting the equipment on the list." Naruto said softly, putting the ecchi lessons, or the Talk that ended up ecchi, Jiraiya had forced him to undergo to good use, emulating a demure girl perfectly. "Could you help me, Jinnai-san?"

"Y...ye...yes!" Iwarubi Jinnai, 18, stuttered in the presence of the beautiful girl. "O... of course!"

"Stop torturing my assistant Naruto-kun." Tetsuo frowned. "They don't come easy."

"But it's so fun." Naruto pouted, stamping his feet childishly, earning him a pile of blood and a flying assistant, whose nose was bleeding profusely.

"That's enough, Naruto-kun. You've sent poor Jinnai-kun to the hospital thrice already." Tetsuo berated. "Any more and I'll take off the discount."

"Alright." Naruto sighed, dispersing his Henge. "But it's his fault for being so ecchi."

"You're not helping either, you know." Tetsuo deadpanned. "And you want the standard set or the special set?"

"The special of course." Naruto grinned. "The standard's for children."

"Alright, there's 50 kunai, 50 shuriken, 2 rolls of shinobi bandage, 2 sets of stationary, 2 pads of writing paper, one seal set, one set of sharpening equipment, and one set of mirrors. It's 5000 yen with discount." Tetsuo calculated.

"Ah alright." Naruto handed over the money, and taking the bag and with a quick Henge, left the store.

* * *

"Customer Shinzou-kun!" The boss of the clothing store called out. "Get your lazy ass off that chair and service the customer!"

"Whatever." The sulking boy groaned, standing up. "It's probably some old woman again."

"Am I old?" Naruto snarled slightly.

"Ah, of course you aren't." Shinzou did a 180 change and became a young gentleman. "How about you go out with me?"

"But..." Naruto pretended to be hesitant. "I'm a boy."

The plume of smoke and the laugh ended with Naruto getting a fist shoved on his noggin, and an irritated Shinzou grabbing him in a headlock. "What did I say about tricking me Naruto-chan?"

"But the look on your face is priceless, and this position enable me to whack you in the nads." Giving the paling Shinzou a grin, Naruto punched the poor man hard. In the jewels.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA..." Shinzou screamed/squeaked, grabbing his abused jewels with both hands.

"And if you'll stop screaming like a girl I want my clothes." Naruto deadpanned.

"Do you really like to torture Shinzou-kun that much, Naruto-chan." The boss sighed. "The standard Academy or the normal Shinobi gear?"

"ANBU." Naruto quipped. "I want the best!"

"Three sets?" The boss asked.

"Yeah." Naruto replied. "15000 Yen right?"

"How did you guess?" The boss asked, mildly surprised.

"Hatake-san forgot to remove the price tag." Naruto deadpanned. "And he fell asleep standing in my apartment."

"Ah, I see." The boss chuckled. "Well, here you go."

"Thanks, obaa-san." Naruto laughed, before he was evicted by a kick to the ass.

"I'm not that old, damn it!"

* * *

"Get off your ass and attend to the customer." Takasu sighed. "And stop reading that shoujo manga during work."

"Hai hai Takasu-san." Shiei sighed. "I'll attend to the customer."

"Excuse me, I need a standard set of the shinobi academy textbooks, as well as several other stuff." Naruto spoke, back in his girl Henge again.

"And what is that several other stuff?" Shiei muttered. "Some shoujo manga, perhaps?"

"Err, I want some books on chakra control, fuuinjutsu, kenjutsu, and Taijutsu." Naruto recited off mis mind.

"Just pick them yourself off this shelf." Shiei replied. "I'll go get the standard academy books."

"Alright." Naruto answered. "Let's see... This and this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this... What's this old book to the corner? Seems interesting. This too then."

Picking up the massive amount of books effortlessly, he freaked out Takasu who was slightly afraid of the basket breaking. Then, Shiei returned to add another stack on top, and the bottom broke. Luckily, Naruto was fast enough, and managed to get all the books on the table before the entire basket splattered.

"I'll take all of these!" Naruto grinned.

"It's... 30420 Yen." Takasu replied. "But with the bulk discount and the Naruto discount, it's only 20000 Yen."

"How'd you know it was me?" Naruto asked. "I didn't do anything that obvious."

"Naruto-kun's probably the only one who'll carry that much while acting like a lady, you know. And with the books, blonde hair and the spiral pattern on the yukata it's obvious." Takasu deadpanned. "20000 yen please."

"Alright." Naruto muttered, counting out the money and handing it to the man.

Taking the huge bag, Naruto plastered the lightening seal Sarutobi had given him for the bookstore and made his way back to his apartment quickly, before the seal wore off and before his hands could go sore from the weight.

* * *

It turned out that the little book that he added into the pile just for the sake of it gave him the most rewards. It had been written by a powerful shinobi, who stated that the book would only appear for those that deserved it, with probably a powerful Genjutsu and Ninjutsu protecting it. However, the shinobi's name had been smudged out, and Naruto didn't have any idea that it was the Sandaime's indirect help. He also didn't know that the Genjutsu and Ninjutsu part was faked, and the Sandaime had placed the book there when he saw Naruto walking towards the store. It turned out that there was another book stuck behind it, which was a book on what the book called wushu, but resembled Taijutsu. This wasn't in the Sandaime's plan, however, but was just a lucky occurance.

The first book was on ninja techniques, which Naruto absorbed quickly, storing it inside his brain. Naruto also knocked together a small but decent bookshelf to place his books on, and had to request a strengthening seal to be carved on by the Sandaime so that the wood wouldn't sag and break.

"This is the life." Naruto sighed in relaxation as he sipped his tea reading one of the books. "No Ero-Ero brothers crashing into my apartment unannounced."

"Who called?" Hatake Kakashi's head appeared from the window.

"Urg..." Naruto groaned. "Here comes Ero-brother one."

There was a faint scream in the distance, and something red and white flew. "And there goes Ero-brother two." Naruto muttered, eye twitching.

"I'm gonna go check up on Jiraiya-sama. Catch ya later." Kakashi gave his eye smile and disappeared in a plume of smoke.

"Don't come back!" Naruto yelled after the Jounin.

* * *

"Weighs, my girl?" The storekeeper asked. "What model?"

"Uhh, the best you have?" Naruto, in another disguise, asked, slightly disgusted at the storekeeper's use of words.

"That's the Mighto Gai model, but I discourage you from getting that orange monstrosity. Might I direct you to the Yondaime models?" The storekeeper gave a sickening grin.

_Why the hell does he label all these with the names of shinobi?!_ Naruto snorted. Picking up what was the supposedly appropriate model for his age, he quickly went for the heaviest, before discarding them again. _This is pathetic._

"He's over here!" He heard someone yell. Thinking it didn't concern him, Naruto continued to browse idly through the pathetic selection, hoping to find something good.

"GIT 'IM!" A voice rang out, and Naruto found himself pulled out from the shop with a person's hands on his shoulder. "GIT THE DEMON!"

"GIVE IT TO HIM!" "KILL THE DEMON!" He could only hear the cries for his death, as his body was repeatedly pummelled, and his limbs secured wide apart. "Think you could escape our detection demon brat? You should be more careful where you go and when you release your techniques!"

Naruto soon blacked out from excessive pain and blood loss, and if it wasn't for the Ero-Sannin wandering about after another failed session outside the baths, he probably would have been in a worse state when he was brought to hospital.

* * *

-Naruto's Mindscape-

"It's a fucking sewer in here." Naruto noted drily. "Is this another attempt to poke fun at me?"

Murky water dripped from the ceiling, forming dirty pools of azure on the dirt floor. The walls were covered with muck, with moss growing in odd patches. "Ooooh. My mind is stagnant." Naruto drawled in sarcasm.

"Now let's see... I got beaten up, and I'm here." Naruto recounted briefly. "So?"

"**Open the door at the end of the corridor, and you will receive the answers you seek to your questions."**

"No offence, but you sound like an oracle." Naruto chuckled.

Moving forward quickly, he found the strangely clean and white door, and twisted the door knob.

What greeted him next boggled his mind. There were probably hundreds of metal bars reaching the ceiling, all pulsing with a gentle glow, and he could faintly see some pulsing lines on the bars themselves. There was a gigantic gate, with a piece of paper fluttering in some nonexistent wind with the kanji for seal surrounded with booster seals circling it. Then there were pipes extending from the cage, one thick, one thin, with the thin one circling the thick pipe. The large pipe glowed reddish pink in colour, while the thin pipe pulsated a vibrant blue.

"**Ah, before we do anything, do you mind changing the appearance? There's only so long before staring at pulsating lights gets boring."**

"How?"

"**Imagine it. This is your mind after all."**

"Ah, alright."

Naruto closed his eyes and focused, imagining his apartment. The smell of fresh laundry hit his nose, along with the smell of paper and books. Opening his eyes, he was greeted to the sight of his apartment door.

"Oh, it worked." Naruto muttered, half in amazement.

"Of course it worked. If it didn't then I'll have no face to continue calling myself the Ruler of the Bijuu, Overlord of the Thirteen Hells, and all that gobbledegook that bores the hell out of me."

"Ah, the Kyuubi." Naruto muttered. "What an honour."

"Learn how to use sarcasm before abusing it, young one."He heard a chuckle from behind him.

Turning around, his eyes stopped on a most extraordinary sight. "Oh my."

"What?"The Kyuubi muttered crossly. "Did you expect me to be a male?"

The Kyuubi was clad in a light red yukata, her red silky hair hanging below her waist, with her bangs framing her perfect face, nine tails waving in the wind, emerging from…

Naruto blushed slightly.

"Why, it seems that someone's getting affected by the Ero-Ero brothers already." Giving him a cheeky grin, the Kyuubi laughed.

"Whatever." Naruto heated up slightly in embarrassment.

"Anyway, back on track." The Kyuubi muttered. "I'm here to inform you of several pieces of information you should know."

"Go on." Naruto nodded.

"Well, do you know who are your parents?" The Kyuubi asked.

"One Namikaze Minato, Yondaime." Naruto replied. "I don't really know my mother's name."

"Your mother is Uzumaki Kushina, from Uzu no Kuni." The Kyuubi replied. "And for the record, my name's not Kyuubi. It's Rantei."

"You don't have a surname?" Naruto asked.

"I don't exactly have a father you know." Rantei replied.

"Oh." Naruto replied. "But why is my surname Uzumaki?"

"Security reasons, you know?" Rantei answered. "Your father killed a lot of Iwa nin during the war. And of course, there's political reasons, where certain factions might decide to kidnap you because of your lineage. Also, it's because she is of higher status than him, being a princess of the Uzu no Kuni's royal family. Of course, that was until she married him, and got stripped of her Princess status."

"And why would you attack Konoha?" Naruto asked.

"Genjutsu and an Uchiha bastard." Rantei spat. "If I see him again I'll roast him into kebabs."

"Uchiha Madara?" Naruto asked. "His name popped up a number of times in the history book I got from the bookstore."

"The wanker himself." Rantei muttered. "On another matter, I'm going to unlock your dormant Kekkei Genkai, and give you a Doujutsu, so to speak. Do you know what the term means?"

"Yeah, why?" Naruto replied. "It was in one of the scrolls."

"And what do you know about the Sharigan?" Rantei asked.

"It allows the user to copy the Ninjutsu or Taijutsu other people use at a glance and the Sharigan also grants extraordinary perception, along with the ability to cast complex Genjutsu without handseals, and Uchihas can instantly see past Genjutsus." Naruto replied. "The scroll only mentioned this much, though it existed after the Byakugan came into being and gained fame due to the expertise of the aforementioned wanker."

"This is correct." Rantei nodded. "What you and most people don't know is that a Tengu in my _army_ gave the Uchiha their Sharigan. This stupid mortal Kujinsaku Uchiha had asked the stupid Tengu to grant him a totally original Doujutsu, because he was envious of the Hyuugas. And…" She shrugged. "That happened."

"And you may have heard of the Uchiha being able to control… well me. This is not true, despite what others may say. Madara caught me off guard and used the information the Tengu unwittingly provided to put me under something like a Genjutsu.I got caught in it twice, although it seems that your father dashed his dreams of getting a new body by sealing me in you." Rantei chuckled. "Sure did ruin his plans."

"There's a higher level to the Sharigan, which is the Mangekyou Sharigan." Rantei sighed. "It's a double bladed sword. While the normal Sharigan already places a large strain on the body, the Mangekyou Sharigan brings it to the next level by straining the eye nerves themselves."

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"The Mangekyou Sharigan allows the user to use three techniques of immense power, but they all must rely on a medium in order to work, which is the eye itself. Also, plenty of chakra is channelled to the eyes in order to alleviate the unnatural stress. Over a long time, the chakra pathways will get so huge that it becomes 'saggy', and then if the user uses a technique, it will burst." Rantei answered. "This is normally characterised by the eye bleeding."

"Wow." Naruto snorted. "Sounds wonderful."

"Indeed." Rantei smirked. "As a result, the eyesight of the Uchiha will suffer badly. There's only this amount of chakra paths to the eyes. There is however, a way to get past this issue."

"What?" Naruto asked.

"If it wasn't my intention to tell you this, I would reply that curiosity killed the fishcake." Rantei giggled. "By using another pair of eyes, and no, exchanging the eyes wouldn't work, you will have what they call the 'Eternal' Mangekyou Sharigan, because when you take out the eyes of another person the chakra used in the Jutsu will reinforce the chakra pathways and the specific Jutsu used will mould the different... It's rather technical and dry, so I'll give you the simpler version. Basically, because the body is different, your body will have the 'rejection reaction'. This however, will result in the Jutsu creating a special type of pathway able to withstand that abuse. It's necessary for that reaction to occur, and it's impossible to induce the specific amount that is unique to each eye."

"It sounds very complicated. Thank gods I'm not an Uchiha." Naruto sighed in relief.

The Kyuubi laughed. "What I'm going to do is to give you the advantage against these cheaters. It's like a 'Anti-Sharigan'-Gan, so whatever Sharigan techniques the Sharigan or Mangekyou Sharigan user throws at you it's useless, negated, and even turned back upon themselves."

"Then your dormant Kekkei Genkai. It's another Doujutsu, called the Tegaigan, from tegatai." The Kyuubi said. (Tegatai is Steady, and Tegaigan is basically derived from Steady + eyes.)

"What does it do Rantei-chan?" Naruto asked.

"It sort of makes you break one of the rules in physics. Inertia does not affect you, because if it did, your father would have puked each time he used the Hiraishin." Rantei answered. "There's also uncanny luck along with it, since he seemed to emerge victorious in any ambush or unplanned events alive, even if barely. Events where you go in knowing the danger, I guess that luck just doesn't care. Like events where you fight with me, Ruler of the Bijuu, Overlord of the Thirteen Hells, Empress of the Dark, etcetera. You get the idea."

"Indeed. I also get the idea that someone has too many titles." Naruto teased.

"Shut up!" Rantei protested. "It's not my fault that I'm too powerful."

"Or is it just your ego?" Naruto laughed.

"Anyway, back on topic, it also gives you more controls over the elements you are aligned to. There's a patch of rather unusual DNA, but your father only had lightning as his affinity, so I don't really understand, since DNA analysis is mostly gobbledegook to me." The Kyuubi stated. "That's all I could guess from the DNA. Anything else?"

"There's another problem nagging at me." Naruto admitted.

"What is it?" Rantei asked.

"Where are the seal and the pipes?" Naruto queried.

"Ah." Rantei replied. "I'll just show you, so just wait a short while."

Fiddling with the knot on her Obi, she undid it and opened her yukata. Naruto didn't turn away, much to her surprise. "That's interesting." Naruto admitted.

She wasn't naked, there was a black substance shaped like a swimsuit on the Kyuubi, with the kanji for seal on the naval area. "This is what the seal has transformed into. And the pipes are underground, so to speak. I cannot move away more than a 10 meter radius from this spot."

"Anyway, I think I should go back before Ero-Sennin or Ero no Sharigan decides to pull a prank on me." Naruto muttered. "Just thinking of what they could do gives me the chills. They might decide to stuff some Icha Icha into my pouches while rushing me to the hospital."

"Time passes here without relation to the real world." Rantei dismissed his worries. "When you wake you'll find out that lesser than one second has passed since you fainted."

"Ah yes." Naruto shuddered. "That's the last time I undo my Henge in public."

"That's a good lesson for you." Rantei nodded. "Be more vigilant."

"So what do we do now?" Naruto asked. "Or can I leave?"

"There's another set of gifts I'm giving to you." The Kyuubi muttered. "Can't have a weak container. Rules and all that gobbledegook that I didn't understand."

"How did you even rise to much without understanding the rules?" Naruto muttered in disbelief.

"Most rules are common sense you know?" Rantei drawled. "I'm going to enhance your five senses, so when you go back prepare to be in a world of pain."

"Do you mind numbing me first before I wake?" Naruto muttered. "I don't feel like feeling all that multiplied times over. I'm probably in enough pain as it is"

"Ah yes." The Kyuubi agreed. "Agreed. You will find that you'll have more muscles, and they'll be rather concentrated compared to the rest of your species, so you'll be rather lean. I'm also making your tenketsu tougher, so that they don't burn out."

"Interesting." Naruto admitted. "Sounds good to me."

"And lastly, you'll gain my elemental affinities which you don't have, which are water, earth and fire." Rantei said.

"I can understand you having fire, but water and earth?" Naruto asked.

"I can raise tsunamis and create earthquakes." Rantei shrugged.

"I see. So I guess I have wind and lightning, and normal?" Naruto drawled.

"Yes." Rantei replied. "If you didn't you'll also have it in the end, since I have elemental affinities to all 6 elements."

"So I'll have the faux-Rinnegan, eh?" Naruto laughed. "I'll hypnotize everyone I meet with those concentric circles."

"You won't." The Kyuubi broke his dreams bluntly. "The Rinnegan is a Kekkei Genkai that does more than just giving you control over the six elements and the concentric circles."

"Aw damn." Naruto sighed. "I wanted something cool."

"You'll probably also have faster reading speeds." The Kyuubi admitted. "Since the other effects of the Tegaigan are unknown to me, but there's a 70 possibility of a heightened reading speed."

"Awesome." Naruto replied sarcastically. "Now I need an excellent memory and I'm set to be the smartest geek in the entire world."

"Ah yes, you may also have a better memory." The Kyuubi chuckled. "It's part of the unknown effects."

"Aww damn." Naruto sighed.

"Anyway, it's time for you to wake. But before that, come here so I can numb your senses." Rantei beckoned with her hands.

* * *

Naruto woke up with a jolt, and screamed so loudly that the Sandaime jumped out of his chair dropping his orange book in the process while taking a _break_. His sense of touch had enhanced, yes, and he could acutely feel where he was hurt, and his eyes could see the flesh knitting itself back in extremely high detail. The worst part was his sense of hearing, and he could hear the sickening squilsh of the flesh knitting itself back. The tang of metal in his mouth was strong, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Are you alright Naruto-kun?" Turning around, Naruto spotted scroll-less copies of the white haired self proclaimed super pervert forming a protective perimeter around him, with the real deal, as evident by the scroll behind his back. "All these fools are currently being sent for a session with Ibiki."

"Ah, good." Naruto drawled. "Now if you'll let me sit here for a moment while the Kyuubi heals me."

"What happened?" Jiraiya asked. "I need to submit a report to Saru-sensei. How did you know about the Kyuubi, too."

"Long story short, I was in a shop shopping when I got jumped because I forgot about the existence of the Hyuugas, who had spotted me taking off my Henge in a shop. And then my sight went black and I met the Kyuubi in my mindscape." Naruto summarised. "What interests me is that how they figured which shopper is the demon-brat."

"They didn't." Jiraiya chuckled. "They just randomly beat up anyone shopping for shinobi gear that they didn't recognize as being a shinobi or having a child which is enrolled in the shinobi academy. Ibiki has a field day today. Another matter, about your seal. You might be curious as to what it does. You can read about it and observe it yourself, but don't fiddle with it."

"Anyway, I've got to go get some weights." Naruto picked himself off the floor, testing out his new senses.

"You could do that with a seal." Jiraiya muttered. "Much easier than a physical object."

"You think I know how?" Naruto deadpanned. "Did you forget who I am? A kid, you know. Not Mr Seal Master."

"Alright." Jiraiya sighed. "I'll loan you this book and some equipment, so get them done and return them to me during the next Laundry Day."

"Okay. I should ask you to do it, but you'll end up ditching me halfway and going off to peep." Naruto nodded, and took the scrolls from the Sannin. "A bit of chakra in the middle right?"

"Correct." Jiraiya nodded. "Now sit tight as I shunshin you back to your apartment."

End of Chapter Two

* * *

Edit : Slightly Revised 29 June.

Explanation on my take on the 6 elements. Since Yamato/Tenzou and Kakashi has demonstrated that there's only 5 'elements', but each and every f-ing website I go to state that the Rinnegan has control over 6, so this means that there's an element unstated. And since the chakra cards only demonstrate 5 characteristics, I concluded that the last was the 'Normal' element, or the elementless element, in a way. Basically, it's all those 'Ninpo' arts that have no linked element, like the Kawarimi, Shunshin, Kage Bushin etc.

Explanation on Jiraiya, and Hatake's closeness to Naruto : Relations to Yondie + Unbiased attitudes + My FRIGGIN WILL. End of Story on this matter. I mean, the explanation is like, they met Naruto, and since Naruto's a little adult, they get interested, and then they hang around more, and then they became friends. Fin


	4. Chapter 3 : Admission,Graduation

Chapter Three : Admission/Graduation.

A series of loud rings resonated around the small apartment, and the unmistakable sound of the most menacing machine, perfected after years and years of research, unstoppable in its conquest made it into the ears of an irate blond. A loud groan came from a mop of blonde hair, and the yellow porcupine snuggled even deeper into his soft down pillow. Trying to crawl further into his fuuton, the irritated blond lashed out wildly, catching the clock in his powerful swing and making another clock imprint in the wall.

"God damn it!" Naruto snarled, threatening to rip the clock a new one, if it wasn't destroyed already.

Getting off the comfortable bed, Naruto poured some chakra into his limbs and gazed at his new seals. "Interesting. Gotta thank Ero-Sannin for this." Retreating the chakra, he observed as the seals disappeared. "I think I'll set it to about 10kg per limb."

Quickly sealing back the books and equipment, he left them on the table, and went to read his books again, so that he wouldn't be so lost on the first day. And true to the Kyuubi's words, he did gain a faster reading speed and an excellent memory.

"Ah, about time." Naruto muttered as he took a look at the clock on the wall. Placing his books back on the shelf, he quickly dressed and made sure that all of his equipment pouches were filled, and he stuffed a book into the pouch for some light reading.

He was dressed in a tight fitting black track suit, with bandages securing the ends and making sure they didn't get caught on anything. The equipment pouches were sitting on a belt, secured by a reinforced belt, which was supposed to be able to take 200kg, but Naruto wasn't tempted to try it.

"There's still forty five minutes. Guess I could cook something up or pop over at Ichiraku." Naruto pondered, seated on his bed. "A small bento or ramen for lunch..."

It was times like this when the Kyuubi-brat could easily be confused with a housewife, muddling around the house wondering about what to cook. And boy, could he cook, having to survive on his own and not choke and vomit out his own food made him a rather excellent cook. And a rather good housekeeper as well, if the spick and span apartment was any indication.

* * *

Leaping across roofs to the academy wasn't what Naruto had planned. But so was being late, and thus he had to compromise. The Kyuubi hadn't the heart to tell him that a mere academy student shouldn't be able to leap across roofs, so she helped. If she didn't, there were a couple of times Naruto might have fallen to his death, or worse, into a bathroom. Who knows what horrors the young boy might see.

"This is the last time I let Ero-Sannin have a go at my fridge." Naruto moaned, to himself. "That stupid dolt turned the thing upside down, and stuck it into a blender or something. Which idiot places the vegetables in the deep freeze?!"

* * *

Umino Iruka was about to close the doors and take the attendance when a blonde blur sped past him and onto a seat, with speed children shouldn't have. Come to think of it, he also didn't have that type of speed, but it was a story for another time. Perhaps he needed to reconsider his career choice, with a mere academy kid already faster than him.

"Anyway, as I was about to speak," Iruka said. "This is your first day at the academy, so we'll just take your attendance and give you a tour of the facilities."

A pineapple head slumped on his table and snored, breaking Iruka's speech.

Grinning in irritation, Iruka took a piece of chalk from the board and threw it. Whizzing through the air, the chalk hit the mark and made pineapple wake up in frustration, look around, and glare a bit, before slumping down again.

Iruka sighed. It was going to be such a long day.

* * *

-3 Years Later-

A seven years old Uzumaki Naruto woke up from his slumber, courtesy of a now destroyed alarm clock. Reaching for the book he was reading the last night, he decided to send the Kage Dai Bushin (Great Shadow Clone) to the academy. At least the book had taught him another Kage Bushin, if not he'll have to sit in the damned academy listening to boring speeches and lessons he already had mastered. The sole downside to that Kage Dai Bushin was that it took way more chakra than a normal Kage Bushin, but could only use limited techniques, like the pitiful techniques the academy taught. And it could take a number of hits. Besides that, it had no other place but to just be a more expensive and more useless clone than a Kage Bushin.

The book only taught him Kage Bushin, and Kage Dai Bushin. The rest were elemental techniques of a decent rank, and they were sealed and released according to how much chakra control and total chakra he had, so he couldn't learn anything else.

Sometimes, having the Hokage, an ANBU, and a Sannin didn't help but make him more advanced than the rest of his generation. That, and the books the bookstore sold, teaching him a bunch of ridiculously advanced techniques that definitely belonged in the Forbidden Scroll. Well, this enabled him to rest at home and read that nice Taijutsu book, which he started just the night before, and the book kept on talking about something called Qi, which probably was Physical Energy, but hey, he can't complain since that book was in the old tongue, and the only reason why he understood was due to the Kyuubi.

The book spoke about something called the Nine Suns and Golden Armour, and something about some Universal Grand Shift, with some medical acupuncture, and poisons manuscripts behind. ( Mini A/N : And this idea was included solely for Taijutsu, since doing this is easier than coming up with another new Taijutsu style, and Naruto learning from Gai is overdone.)

The book was interesting, and what amused him was the exact amount of time needed to master the required section, the part about the Nine Suns and Golden Armour, which was exactly five years. So, as long as he told Sarutobi that he was doing some personal training, that old man would leave him alone and not chase after him to attend the academy. Which was extremely dry, boring, and severely dumbed down. Seriously, 8 fucking years spent on learning about history, throwing some shuriken and kunai, along with just 5 simple techniques (Kawarimi, Henge, Bushin, and the Kakuremino, AKA Cloak of Invisibility, Nawanuke, Rope Escape, the last two most people forget. Apparently.)

Giving a rather evil chuckle, he sent a Kage Bushin to the old man to explain, before seating down and reading the very interesting book. He might have unnerved the neighbours with the occasional weird chuckle, and the sudden full blown laughter when the Kage Bushin dispersed itself, but not before observing the Hokage's shocked face.

Sarutobi, other than the normal massive loads of paperwork, had now an information leak to worry about. Just how in the world did Naruto, of all people, get his hands on a Kinjutsu of A rank, without him knowing? The Scroll was still there, untouched. Oh yeah, he did place the book there himself. He was getting senile, indeed. Deciding that it was best to forget all about the depressing sign of his age, and just go back to the damned paperwork he couldn't use Kage Bushins to handle. Blast Danzo and his shenanigans.

* * *

Naruto was mildly surprised that he nearly finished the Nine Suns and Golden Armour in four years, when it was supposed to take five. The aid of the Kyuubi might have factored into the equation, and now he had a year to spend, while waiting for the final barrier to fall. Maybe he should just take it easy and graduate early, but that would be counterproductive to the stupid idiot image he put up. He even went to such lengths to get the Hokage to allow him to take and fail with 100 certainly for the past two years. Being stupid, but not the most stupid should give him the advantage. Juzou Sarutobi had been rather irritated and pissed after he failed. Again.

Although being the most stupid would help, he didn't want to get stuck with the Uchiha survivor, who could teach stone lessons in being silent. And possibly secure himself his much wanted power by just emo-ing about it. And his much vaunted Duck-Hair had landed him in rather hot soup after Naruto gave him an addition when the Uchiha was glaring at something, and staring to the side, so his clone took the chance and stuck a paper duck bill to his hair. The much vaunted _genius_ walked about school that day with a duck bill on his head. His SKFC (Sasuke Kun Fan Club) thought it was cute, and the rest of the boys had enough self restraint not to laugh like a maniac right in front of Sasuke.

Thank gods that he didn't have to feel guilty about sacrificing Kiba, since that dolt deserved it, with him discarding Akamaru's faeces bag on the floor once, and then Kiba himself forgot all about it and stepped on it himself, and stunk up the entire classroom till Iruka got frustrated and did a rather subsided Suiton jutsu to wash away the shit and a rather mini Fuuton to get the stink out.

So, deciding that he should make a good use of the time, he decided to delve into the world of Fuuinjutsu, after he finished the rest of the book, which would be done in just a day. Having the Seal Master of an Ero-Sannin and a Hokage as your buddies helped. A lot. Of course, he needed to taunt the easily baited Jiraiya first.

* * *

-8 Years after admission to academy-

Naruto was peeved. Irritated. Pissed off. Angry. Furious. And he was starting to have blood lust. Lust for the meddling Hokage's blood. How dare that old man screw up all his plans and change his scores. The old man had singlehandedly ruined his stupidity plan by revising all his scores and replacing them with ones that reflected his ability, meaning instead of scraping a pass, he received perfect.

"I'll burn down your Icha Icha later." Naruto cursed venomously. Eight years of efforts being washed down the drain in one night would make anyone as irritated as the blonde. "And I'll give you an extra kick in the jewels for stating about my status in Fuuinjutsu."

Almost all Genins hopefuls jumped out of the blonde's way, as his aura of death had forewarned them. Almost being the keyword, as the prideful Uchiha strutted rather like an arrogant peacock on Naruto's path.

"Out." Naruto barked. The Uchiha jolted, not used to being commanded like a lower being, and ended moving out of the way subconsciously. "Good."

"What's got into the normally polite Naruto-kun today?" Sakura wondered aloud. "He seems upset."

"That's an understatement Haruno-san." Shikamaru drawled. "He's more than pissed."

"Furious." Shino muttered. "Incensed. Seething. Livid. Apoplectic."

"Ah yes." Chouji agreed. "Maybe some chips will cool him down. He looks like wrath personified."

"Not everyone turns to food Chouji-kun." Ino sighed. "Only you."

"Did you see how he walks?" Kiba muttered. "Instead of walking with that... that..."

"Noble?" Shikamaru offered.

"Ah yes." Kiba muttered. "Instead of him walking like a noble like before, he's like a vengeful demon."

"He looks ready to cave in you skull, Kiba." Ino muttered. "He's glaring at you."

"Eep!" Kiba squeaked, before running away, Akamaru trotting after him.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto emerged from the examination room; his face sourer than a lemon, hitai ate attached to his left arm, secured in place with a rather crude knot. After Sarutobi's stunt, he decided just to go all out and forget about the consequences. Hence, right now, the Ninjutsu instructor was stuck on the ceiling after a Tajuu Bushin Jutsu, Taijutsu test instructor was stuck in a wall by a powerful punch, while the Genjutsu instructor was slightly confused, which resulted in his Genjutsu techniques failing rather badly, baffling the Uchiha, who had proudly demanded to go last.

Slumping in his seat irritably, he waited, before pretending to go to the toilet and set two Kage Bushins upon the Hokage's Icha Icha collection. He then went back to his seat and sulked for the rest of the day, only grinning once when the memories of both Kage Bushins was transmitted to him. One of the Kage Bushins had grabbed the entire shelf, while the other blocked the Hokage for long enough for the other to do a Bushin Daibakuha and blow the entire shelf to smithereens.

Iruka managed to multitask and finish the Uchiha's examinations, and finally emerged rather breathless and haggard, having to rescue the other instructors. "Those who passed, meet here tomorrow for the team match ups." Iruka panted. "The results will also be posted tomorrow. Be here sharp, and punctual."

When he was done Iruka was mildly surprised and uncertain as the blonde disappeared in a plume of smoke.

* * *

Naruto, when he turned open his apartment door, was greeted with the visage of the Hokage which was rarely seen. Irritated, eyes red from crying, pipe shaking up and down with fury. Naruto had to hold back a chuckle. "Yes, Saru-jiisan?"

"Was destroying my books necessary Naruto-kun?" The Sandaime hissed. "Those cost more than you think."

"So did my facade, Hokage-sama." Naruto hissed back. "To find out that eight years of labour went down, into the drain doesn't make this Jinchuuriki a happy man."

"I was saving you from being assigned with Kiba-kun to Sasuke-kun, you know." The old man snarled. "The Council were planning on putting you two sacrifices on the same team so that the sensei can fully focus on teaching Sasuke."

"But the sensei's definitely Kaka-san and he wouldn't bother teaching the Uchiha anything more than he can be bothered to teach me." Naruto replied.

"Precisely." Sarutobi hissed. "I can't let your talents go to waste under that lazy gaki!"

"Gaki?" Naruto muttered.

"I'm his sensei's (Yondaime) sensei's (Jiraiya) sensei, you know." Sarutobi answered. "It's fully in my rights to call him a gaki. And back on topic. Those were rather precious you know?"

"If you want another set, I can just ask Ero-san for them." Naruto muttered. "And maybe I'll paint explosive seals over every page so they blow up in your face."

"That's enough insubordination from you, Genin." Sarutobi glowered, releasing his check on his chakra, stressing the last word. "I am the supreme authority over the shinobi, and you will accept my decisions."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto muttered, not affected by the show. "And just so you know, I'm holding back nearly 90 of my chakra, so don't make me upstart the Hokage."

"You have the Kyuubi." Sarutobi stated. "I don't. And I'm a resigned, out of duty shinobi. I'm old, Naruto. You're young."

"Good point." Naruto conceded. "Now we've all but made up, how about I send a letter to your student and demand a replacement set?"

"Alright." Sarutobi nodded, appeased, with a rather perverted grin on his face. "I'll see you tomorrow for the team match ups."

* * *

Sarutobi sighed, dressed in the stiff ceremonious Hokage's robes. Moving to straighten the creases, he settled the hat on his balding head and stepped into the council room. The room, cylindrical in design, with multiple tiers, indicating nobility. The Hyuuga clan leader, Hyuuga Hiashi, settled himself comfortably in the second lowest tier, and he nodded slightly to the Hokage. The other seat left in the tier was empty, and was most likely not to be filled till years later, when Uchiha Sasuke became a Jounin, and by extension, powerful enough to claim his seat as Clan Leader, and the seat in the council. The seat on the lowest tier was empty, with a spiral design adorned on it. The other half of the room, which was the civilian council, was empty, and devoid of any councilmen.

"Silence!" The Hokage called out, silencing the murmurs. "This meeting of the shinobi council is brought to order!"

"For what reason have we been called to order, Hokage-sama?" Hiashi said, in the deep voice of his.

"The matter concerns the Team placements." Sarutobi said curtly. "And this was specially requested by the council, if you remember."

"Of course, Hokage-sama." Hiashi replied.

"Sasuke Uchiha will be on Hatake Kakashi's team, no?" Danzo sneered.

"Not necessarily." The Hokage replied tartly. "It has not been confirmed yet."

"Who is in agreement with me?" Danzo asked, but Sarutobi cut him short.

"If you remember, Danzo-san, I, not you, is the current Hokage, and the chairman of the council." Sarutobi snapped. "If you wish to speak, ask for permission."

"Hai, _Sandaime-sama_." Danzo sneered, placing special emphasis on Sandaime.

"I realise that my time has gone, Danzo." Sarutobi said, discarding the honorifics to show his distaste for the war hawk. "But I'm the current Hokage, and you will obey."

"Hokage-sama." Hiashi spoke. "May I request that my daughter Hinata be placed on Yuuhi Kurenai's team."

"Approved." Sarutobi nodded. "But the Hyuuga Elders?"

"They will not question my choices, Hokage-sama." Hiashi snarled slightly. "You will have my assurance that I will not forgive and severely punish any Hyuuga that might choose to commit any acts of hostility or interference with her sensei."

"Very well." Sarutobi nodded. "Any more specific requests?"

"Sarutobi-sama." Shikaku Nara, his trusted strategist, spoke. "Might I request that my son be placed under your son, Sarutobi Asuma's team?"

"Approved." Sarutobi nodded. "Any more?"

"No, Hokage-sama." The council muttered. (Damn Japanese with 'no' sharing the romanji of yes.)

"Very well then." Sarutobi nodded. "Now for Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hatake Kakashi." Danzo snapped.

"Any objections?" Sarutobi muttered.

"No, Hokage-sama."

"Uzumaki Naruto?" Sarutobi smirked slightly.

"Why were there score revisions, Hokage-sama?" Hiashi muttered, looking through the file.

"Those were scores created by a Bushin." Sarutobi muttered, omitting that it was a Kage Dai Bushin, not a mere Bushin.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama, but how can a illusion pick up kunai?" Shikaku spoke.

"It was a Kage Bushin." Sarutobi revealed.

"Who taught him Fuuinjutsu?!" Danzo snarled, slamming his hands on the mini desk the chair had, breaking it. "And a Kinjutsu, Kage Bushin?!"

"Why, Jiraiya-kun did." Sarutobi smirked. "And know your place, Danzo, or I'll have you arrested for insubordination."

"I suggest he enters Yuuhi Kurenai's team." Shikaku spoke, the analyst in him cranking into action. "His Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Fuuinjutsu are better than most genin, but his Genjutsu is pathetic compared to his other skills. It would also make an excellent tracking/infiltration/assassination team if Aburame Shino joined."

"And why would you say that?" Sarutobi asked, for the benefit of the currently twitching Hyuuga Clan Leader, who was about to stand and throttle the Nara for suggesting that his daughter would do better with a silent Kikaichu user and a rather volatile Jinchuuriki.

"Look here Nara." Hiashi snapped. "Aburame Shino's silent, and from what I can see, Uzumaki is also rather silent but explosive. My daughter is as quiet as quiet can go, thank you."

"Calm down Hiashi-san." Shikaku drawled. "Aburame Shino's kikaichu and Hyuuga Hinata's Byakugan will be excellent for tracking and locating targets, while the Uzumaki's prodigious talents will ensure that they will escape from any situation relatively unscathered since his tremendous amounts of Kage Bushins will provide an excellent distraction."

"Alright then." Sarutobi nodded. "Team 8 is settled."

"Hokage-sama, might I suggest having Haruno Sakura and Inuzuka Kiba on Hatake Kakashi's team?" Hiashi muttered. "Haruno Sakura has an extremely good chakra control, and thus she will be able to learn Genjutsu easily, and Inuzuka Kiba has a solid grip on Taijutsu. I believe this will allow them to be all rounded, as Uchiha Sasuke has a high amplitude for Ninjutsu."

"Your reasoning is sound." Sarutobi nodded. "Team 7 is confirmed."

"The Ino-Shika-Cho Trio should remain." Tsume suggested. "The teamwork and rapport between them is exemplary, and the capabilities of such a team has been demonstrated in our generation." To this, Shikaku, Inoshi, and Chouza nodded their agreement.

"So Team 10 is also settled." The Hokage nodded.

"The rest stand little to no chance of passing, frankly speaking." Shikaku shook his head. "Their abilities are the lowest of the low in all these years."

"I'm tempted to say 'We never know till we try.', but clearly, this does not apply with the horrendous standard the rest possess." Aburame Shibi spoke. "The fact that they passed is the testament to the low standards we have. This must be corrected at once."

Sarutobi sighed. He knew that it was true. "We should at least assign them to teams according to their talent. Who knows, there might be another like Naruto."

* * *

Naruto dropped down from the ceiling and onto his seat. He had taken the back route with all the rioters in front of the academy. He noted with slight amusement when the rioters were promptly arrested for causing public unrest.

"Attention class!" Iruka yelled, clapping his hands in a bid to garner the attention of the Genins. "PAY ATTENTION TO ME!"

_I've got to ask for that demon head jutsu. _Naruto mused.

The class went instantly silent so as not to raise the ire of the scarred Chuunin. "Today is Graduation Day, but before I go too fast, I'll read out the scores and rankings of the first three students. Those who failed, sorry, but try again next year. Eh, they aren't here anyway. Err… Whoops? If you'll open your desk cover you'll find your result slips beneath."

"For these examinations, in third place, Aburame Shino, with a total of 90.4. In second, Uchiha Sasuke, 94.3. In first place, Uzumaki Naruto, with a total of 100." Iruka muttered, to the disbelief of the entire class. "BE SILENT! Chat after I'm done!"

"For the year, in third place, Aburame Shino, 96.5. In second place, Uchiha Sasuke, 98.3. In first place, Uzumaki Naruto, 100. For the entire course, tied in third place, Aburame Shino and Sakura Haruno, 93.1. In second place, Uchiha Sasuke, 97.4. In first place, and Rookie of the year, Uzumaki Naruto, with a total of 100." Iruka mentioned, disbelieving the results themselves. "And before you guys start, I don't believe it myself."

"You can blame good ole Sandaime-sama." Naruto grunted.

"Talking about me?" The voice at the doorway made all the Genins snap to attention.

"Hokage-sama!" The shinobi and kunoichi in the room snapped to attention.

"At ease." The Sandaime raised his hand slightly. "Carry on, Iruka-kun."

"Hai, Hokage-sama!" Iruka proceeded to take out a different piece of paper. "Now for the teams..."

Naruto arced an eyebrow as he realised that he didn't know most of the 27 that passed. "Team Seven, under Jounin Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, and Inuzuka Kiba." _That was rather expected. The Uchiha with the Sharigan no Kakashi, and the bookworm and the dobe. _"Team Eight, under Yuuhi Kurenai, Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, and Uzumaki Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto is also under the Toad Sannin, Jiraiya-sama for further studies in Fuuinjutsu." There were rather a large 

amount of gasps at this, due to the fact that it was extremely unusual for a Genin to graduate with skills in Fuuinjutsu. "Team Nine is still in circulation from last year. Team Ten, under Sarutobi Asuma, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Chouji."

"Your instructors will be with you in an hour, so take the time to get closer to your team mates, and goodbye." With this, Iruka retreated out of the room for the Hokage to give his speech.

The Hokage gave a short speech of about five minutes, before leaving them and the class erupted in uproar over the-former-second-dobe-now-Rookie-of-the-Year Uzumaki Naruto.

"What happened Naruto-kun?" Chouji asked, shovelling chips into his mouth. "I've never heard of you being first in anything before."

"Saru-jiisan decided to destroy the deception I built up for eight years. Go figure." Naruto grunted, disappearing in a burst of smoke, out of the way of a raving Haruno and Yamanaka.

* * *

Shino noted with fascination at the place Naruto disappeared to. The rooftop. Setting his lunch on one of the various generators, he noted Naruto giving him a rather blank look.

"Hinata-san told me where you were." Shino intoned emotionlessly.

"Ah, the Byakugan." Naruto nodded in understanding. "Did you come here to ask me questions?"

"No." The bug user shook his head. "Isn't deception part of being a shinobi?"

"I think you're one of the few that understands." Naruto laughed. "Still I have to thank Saru-jiisan. If he didn't change them I'll be stuck with the Uchiha and dog boy or pink banshee."

"It would be fascinating." Shino nodded slightly. "You and the Uchiha."

"Hmm... Listening to what Kaka-san says, it seems that our sensei's only seventeen, known as the Ice Queen, has a rather respectable bust, wears bandage like clothing, and likes shochu, salted octopus, and taking a glass of wine at night or dinner. She dislikes cake, apparently." Naruto recounted. "She also dislikes those orange books and perverts, especially ole one eye."

"It seems that you did your research." Shino remarked.

"I just remembered what Kaka-san said." Naruto dismissed. "He and toady have a rather loose mouth around me. Me being a gaki and all that."

They ate their lunches in silence, and Naruto could still hear the furious discussion down below. "It's nearly time Naruto-san." Shino remarked.

Nodding, Naruto disappeared in a plume of smoke.

End of Chapter Three.

* * *

A/N : I've got my exams coming, so later chapters will have only minor editing, since I'm already done up to chapter seven. XD

PS, I've got an idea on what type of weapon Naruto will be using, and you can see the concept images in my profile. This will result in me calling him Kyuudoka no Shikyou, meaning Archer of Death. Basically, Naruto wears the gloves, and charges chakra to them. Tapping the centre gem (The yellow thing with a red circle around it, with red lines joining the red circle), Naruto will draw his arm back, and there'll be a 'string' of chakra, or many 'strings', depending on how many fingers touch the gem separately, he draws the hand with the 'strings' attached back, and when he has aimed, jerks his hand quickly, and the 'strings' will fly and hit the target. So basically, he becomes a sniper, and quick draws are possible. This concept Interesting/Boring/Sucks? Do the poll and I'll decide whether to implement it. There's about 7 more chapters from this chapter to go before I decide.


	5. Chapter 4 : Introductions,Test

Chapter Four : Introductions/Test

What greeted Naruto when he re-entered the classroom wasn't pleasant. There was a furious Uchiha Sasuke, who was speaking more words than he did in a year. "You cheater! I challenge you to a match!"

"Whatever." Naruto dismissed, and punched the running Sasuke hard on the head, sending the poor Uchiha sailing across the room, and crashed onto the wall and landing in a slump at the bottom of the wall.

"How dare you do that to Sasuke-kun!" Yamanaka Ino/Haruno Sakura yelled in righteous fury. "How **_dare_** you assault **_Sasuke_**-kun!"

"Want some?" Naruto muttered. "If you don't then shut up."

* * *

Yuuhi Kurenai wasn't sure if she had arrived at the correct classroom, since there was a big ruckus and in the middle of the ruckus unfazed was the subject, Uzumaki Naruto. "Be silent!" Asuma, who had arrived slightly earlier than her, was attempting the impossible by trying to calm the room down. Currently flapping his arms like a mother hen, Asuma looked way different from his normally laid back self. "**_SILENCE!_**" The blonde boy yelled, slamming his fist on the table. That was, if his incredible strength didn't make the table collapse. As such, there was a bang, before a crack and a crash was heard.

The class became silent after that outburst, and Asuma took the chance to take his team out of the room quickly. Kurenai entered, and next to her, three people appeared, which were clearly her team, with the distinctive Hyuuga and the Aburame. It was amusing to find out that her team included the boy of miraculous strength. "Okay, so meet me on the roof in ten minutes." Having said this, Kurenai disappeared in a plume of smoke.

Shino and Naruto shared a look, before shrugging. Naruto disappeared in another plume of smoke, while Shino and Hinata had to take the stairs. Shino grumbled subconsciously, while Hinata had a slightly amused look at her team mate's expression, before lowering her head again.

* * *

"Oh, so you know the Shunshin?" Kurenai remarked rather amusedly.

"You'll pick up on lots of techniques even some Jounins don't when you have the Hokage, the Toad Sannin and an Ex-ANBU as your friends." Naruto stated blandly. "Especially when said Sannin attempts to bribe you with techniques so you'll follow him to the hot springs and use you as an excuse to peep."

"Oh." Kurenai remarked. "Your life sounds interesting, Rookie of the Year."

"Don't remind me of that." Naruto groaned. "Saru-jiisan totally screwed up my 8 years of labour."

"I heard you destroyed all of his Icha Icha books." Kurenai asked. "Is it true?"

"I blew them up, to be specific." Naruto replied. "Bushin Daibakuha was pretty useful."

"You even know two Kinjutsu?" Kurenai blinked in surprise. "That's... unexpected."

"More than that, actually." Naruto admitted. "Except I don't know how many are actually classified as Kinjutsu."

"Interesting." Kurenai nodded. "And why did Hokage-sama change your scores?"

"Something along the lines of 'I'm the Hokage, and I'll do what I bloody want and you can't stop me.'" Naruto mused. "And 'I saved you from Sasuke/Kakashi, so be grateful gaki.'"

Kurenai chuckled at Naruto's comical impersonation of the Sandaime. The door at the other end opened, and Shino and Hinata emerged from the stairwell. Shino gave him a rather devious smirk for an Aburame, as indicated by the slight curl of the mouth, and Naruto glared him. "And just in case your imagination went into overdrive Shino, we were just chatting."

"Indeed." Shino replied, with a slight disbelieving tone. "Chatting."

"Alright!" Kurenai clapped her hands. "Let's begin with some introductions."

"Why don't you go first, sensei?" Naruto suggested.

"Ah, alright. I'm Yuuhi Kurenai, rookie Jounin. I like shochu, salted octopus, and taking a glass of wine at night or dinner. I dislike cake, perverts, and orange books." Kurenai spoke, and Naruto prodded Shino in the ribs, giving him a slight grin. "Dreams for the future? Master Genjutsu and perhaps settle down. Hobbies... Learning new Genjutsu?"

_Genjutsu maniac... _Naruto thought.

"Your turn, Naruto-kun." Kurenai pointed.

"Uzumaki Naruto, Rookie of the Year, Genin. I like reading, cooking, and... training? I dislike the Ero duo, stupid fools, and that Uchiha. Dreams for the future? Uhh, being a Jounin and maybe the Hokage? Hobbies... Uhh, reading and annoying the Ero-Ero brothers?" Naruto muttered.

"Interesting hobby over there." Kurenai chuckled. "Shino-san?"

"Aburame Shino, Genin. I like breeding new bugs. I dislike people who kill bugs. I want to take over and be a good clan head in the future. My hobbies are studying bugs." Shino muttered.

"Ah , bugs." Kurenai nodded, not sure of what to say. "Hinata-chan?"

"I... I'm Hyu... Hyuuga H... Hi... Hinata." Hinata stuttered. "I... I like cooking, a...arranging flowers. I... I dislike p... people who j... judge by looks. I... I want to... w... want to become better. I... I b...brew tea when I'm f...free."

"Ah yes tea brewing. Very relaxing." Kurenai nodded. _Got to get rid of the stutter._

"Anyway, I've got some important news for you guys." Kurenai chuckled. "It's going to be rather upsetting, so make some mental preparations. There's a test tomorrow, which you guys have to pass in order to truly become Genins."

"Ah, that." Naruto nodded. "Failure rate of 66.667 this year."

"Oh, so you know?" Kurenai muttered in surprise. "Kakashi-san told you?"

"More of him mumbling about what reason to use for an excuse to be late for the test." Naruto admitted. "How that guy survived with his constant tardiness is a miracle. Along with his face."

"Indeed." Kurenai giggled. "They call his face the one of the Wonders of the Shinobi world. Anyway, turn up at Training Grounds 8 at 0700 hours tomorrow. Don't be late! Dismissed."

"Hai sensei!" The Genins shouted, with Naruto giving a mock salute.

And two of the members on the roofs disappeared in plumes of smoke. Shino growled subconsciously, and Hinata tried to stifle a giggle when his body language obviously indicated that "I seriously need to learn that technique."

* * *

"Oh shut up." Naruto groaned, as another clock met the wall and collapsed. "It's only five according to my biological clock."

_**And your clock is one hour behind. **__Oh shush, Rantei-chan. **What? I'm just speaking the truth, you disillusional Genin.**  
_

Naruto picked himself up from the bed, and after dragging himself to the toilet and freshening himself, made a quick breakfast and changed quickly. Strapping his kunai holster and affixing the bandage firmly to his upper thigh, he wore the ANBU style gloves, metal protector glinting slightly, and slipped on his special sandals, which had a seal which he had carved on the base, lightening the weight that was pressed onto the ground, as if he went around jumping with all his weighs, he'll be bankrupted from all the repairs he'll have to pay for. And Sarutobi would have a field day with him. He shuddered at the thought.

He grinned, remembering the time he stomped on the Sannin who wanted to see what he was doing and swiped off his sandal mid stomp. The poor hermit had to spend a week in hospital after that. Chuckling rather darkly, he placed his Hitai ate on his forehead, changing the location after his armpit had some abrasion due to the rather sharp metal and tied both ends neatly.

Taking to the roofs, he leaped his way quickly towards Training Grounds 8.

"You're late." Shino muttered.

"Hey!" Naruto protested. "I don't know where the Training Grounds were!"

"Naruto-kun was only late by a few seconds, Shino-kun." Kurenai chuckled. "You make it sound like he's hours late."

"Hn." Shino grunted.

"Ano..." Hinata mumbled. "C... could we j...just get st...started?"

"Ah, yes." Kurenai remarked. "I'll briefly explain the test."

"Bell test?" Naruto remarked.

"No, that's Kakashi's." Kurenai snorted. "Team 7's probably still waiting when we're finished. For my test, all you need to do is to catch me, by... 1000 Hours, which is around three hours from now. You may... BEGIN!" The last word rang loudly, from somewhere far ahead.

Naruto disappeared in a burst of speed, leaving behind only a trail of dust, while Shino and Hinata followed at a far slower pace behind.

"Tch. Tajuu Kage Bushin!" Naruto snarled, and a five hundred Narutos, created without the weights, disappeared in a burst of speed. "Shino, use your kikaichu! Hinata, your Byakugan!"

Giving a slight nod, swarms of kikaichu came out of Shino's sleeves, worming (Pun intended) about, while Hinata's normally lilac eyes had the hint of an iris appearing, with the veins at the side of the eyes appearing. "There's about five Kurenai-sensei directly in front..."

"Just a Kage Bushin with some Iwa Bushins." Naruto snarled, as 10 clones dispelled themselves before they were hit. "I wonder how she knows these techniques."

"Jounin." Shino answered.

"Ugh." Naruto groaned. "Any more Kurenai-senseis around Hinata?"

"Three to our right, and about six to our left!" Hinata spoke, her stutter forgotten in the heat of the chase.

"Ignore the six." Naruto muttered, as another 14 clones dispelled. "Fakes."

A sudden fireball jutsu caused the trio to separate, all jumping backwards to avoid it. "Tch." Naruto snorted. "She's trying to separate us!"

"By the looks of it she's in the south!" Naruto snapped. "Hinata!"

"Hai!" Hinata turned around to have a better look with her Kekkei Genkai. "There's five Kurenai-senseis to the south!"

Five Kunais aimed at them broke their banter. Two Naruto's dropped from the trees at each side and grabbed Shino and Hinata, throwing them out of the way of two Earth Dragons. "What the fuck!" Naruto cursed. "An Earth Dragon in a Genin test?!"

"Suiton : Suiryuudan!" (Water Release, Water Dragon Missile.) Naruto snarled, spewing water in the form of a dragon from his mouth, launching the first counter attack. While the dragon was still being generated, Naruto had two clones hide inside the gigantic dragon, which they'll serve as a distraction while they caught the elusive sensei.

"There's two clones inside of the dragon." Naruto whispered to his teammates, once they were beside him again. "They'll distract her for a while."

"There's two kikaichu on the real Kurenai-sensei." Shino muttered.

"Good." Naruto muttered. "Hinata, how many Kurenai-senseis left in the south?"

"Three, and they're engaging your clones." Hinata reported.

"Darn." Naruto snarled. "One Dragon wasn't enough."

"Two senseis left with one clone." Hinata muttered.

"Ah, got her good with a Katon: Goukakyū no Jutsu." (Fire Release : Fire Ball Technique.) Naruto nodded, the memories of the clones prompting his speech. "Let's go!"

Grabbing the arms of his teammates, Naruto burst off in high speed, and launched them forwards, before his clone repeated the gesture on him. "Ya ha!"

"Uh." Shino groaned.

Pushing his teammates forwards slightly, they managed to surprise the Genjutsu mistress, simply by flying out from the forest canopy at high speed and crashing on top of her. "Does this count as catching you?" Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Misgauged my strength."

"If that's misgauging, then I'll rather not think of what'll happen if you gauged correctly. NOW GET OFF ME!" Kurenai snarled.

"Ano..." Hinata stuttered, now that the battle pressure had worn off. "I...I..."

"Anyway, you guys passed." Kurenai dusted herself, getting rid of the dust. "Geez... I didn't even get the chance to use a Genjutsu."

"Blame yourself for being caught unprepared." Naruto chuckled. "Though did you take out a number of my clones."

"Indeed." Kurenai chuckled. "Well then, Team 8 has passed their test."

"Uhh... Am I supposed to pop some fireworks?" Naruto drawled sarcastically. "Or perhaps draw up a gigantic over the top banner and run starker in the town?"

Kurenai sighed at the rather quick mood change of the blonde. "Since it's still early we'll be doing some training till noon, before we break for lunch, and then we'll do several missions. Of course, we'll meet at the Hokage's tower after lunch."

"Ah training." Naruto grunted. "Let's begin."

"Alright." Kurenai nodded. "Have you heard of the leaf exercise?"

"Done." Shino muttered, with Hinata's rather shy nod of the head. Naruto instead, looked rather interested. "What leaf exercise? I've only heard of tree walking, water walking and fire walking. Although that might just be Hatake's fault."

"You mean to tell me you skipped the basics and jumped to the more advanced versions of the chakra exercises?" Kurenai snorted. "Alright then, you can go and grab a few leafs, and try to levitate them using your chakra. Place the leaf on any body part and try."

"Like this?" Naruto chuckled. Disappearing in a burst of speed only to appear right in front of a tree, he gave the tree a rather solid punch, which resulted in the leaves of the tree falling down. The most amusing part was when Naruto sped around the tree, and levitated the entire canopy of leaves. Shino sighed while Kurenai twitched. "Of course, if Sandaime-sama didn't screw up my plans I wouldn't even be doing this. Rather, I'll just blow all these leaves sky high and pretend that my chakra control's so pathetic that a civilian could do better. But no..."

"You seem especially whiny today." Kurenai muttered. "Grow a backbone and take it like a man."

"I'm a boy." Naruto deadpanned. "A man is an adult. I'm not. Yet."

If it wasn't for her patience, which had been tempered for years with her friend Anko's rather unwanted aid/antics, Kurenai would have exploded and given the blonde Genin a taste of why she was called the Ice Queen and Genjutsu Mistress. God pardon those who called her Ice Bitch.

"Alright, then do some self training." Kurenai spoke. "And I'll be monitoring you all to see your skill levels."

"Hai, sensei." Shino, and Naruto mumbled, while Hinata just stuttered out a "Hai".

Moving quickly to a good vantage spot on the trees, Kurenai observed her Genin mulling about. Shino seemed to be doing some Kikaichu training, either he was doing some obedience training or something, since he was holding up a Kikaichu and peering at it, or he was finding new species. Hinata however, seemed to be standing on the spot, uncertain, and not doing anything but to activate her eyes occasionally. The Uzumaki however, lazing about. Probably he couldn't be bothered to train, or he was doing some mediation. Perhaps.

Dropping down, she approached the Hyuuga heir. She sighed in slight frustration. It would be a long year of D-Ranked and the occasional C-Ranked missions. Not trilling. _At all_.

Yuuhi Kurenai sighed. Perhaps submitting her admittance form for the ANBU exams would have been a better choice.

She sighed again when she realised that the blonde was running towards her. Mind you, she wouldn't mind her student so... so enthusiastically running to learn from her. The issue was, the blonde was on fire. Not just fire. Some sort of weird lightning was crackling over his clothes.

"Jump in the river Naruto." She offered, helpfully. "It should put out the fire."

Of course, she forgot about how water and lightning didn't mix. While the fire was indeed extinguished, what could be found left was a badly electrocuted and charred Uzumaki Naruto. "Bad suggestion, Kurenai-sensei." Naruto spat.

"I can see." Kurenai snorted. "I'm not blind."

"And?" Naruto grunted. "Your point?"

"Urgh." Kurenai gritted her teeth together. "I'll go and help Hinata-chan."

"Oh sure." Naruto grumbled. "And leave me floating here."

"You can pick yourself out of that small river Uzumaki-san." Kurenai berated. "And have some respect for your teacher. I'm not your chummy mate."

"After trainings I can, right?" Naruto chuckled. "Kurenai-sensei."

"Y..." She sighed in defeat. "Yes you can."

"Yatta!" Naruto cheered. "I hate formalities."

Kurenai nodded stiffly, before moving off. _If I didn't know better I'd think that he has PMS with all his mood swings, from grouchy to suddenly a rather childish attitude._ Stopping right in front of the Hyuuga, she squatted slightly to meet the girl at eye level. "Hinata-chan, what are you doing?"

She was positively sure the girl jumped. Not just jumped, but shrieked without stuttering. A rather interesting development, one she might choose to expound on once the ringing in her ears went away. _Perhaps surprising her wasn't my best attempt_.

Naruto chuckled, and returned to his training, which he was trying to find a suitable combination of the five dragon jutsu, to see which would go first, second, third, forth, and last, to create a devastating combo. Of course, the answer proved elusive and he ended up burnt, charred, electrocuted again.

"Gah!" Naruto snarled.

"Lunch break!" Kurenai yelled, rather cheerfully. In that rather short period of time, she had managed to extricate and locate the reason for the Hyuuga's bashfulness, her mother. Rather, the lack of a mother after hers died giving birth to Hinata's sister, Hanabi, due to complications. It hadn't been her fault, but she took it hard and her ego took a rather severe beating, reduced to nearly nothing.

Also, her father had grown redrawn and ignored her needs, choosing to focus solely on her training as a ninja and as a kunoichi, instead of a human. A tool of the village, to be crude. An outstanding kunoichi befitting of the Hyuuga Main Family's name, to be polite. Yuuhi Kurenai couldn't be bothered. There was something wrong with the girl, and by Kami's sake, she was going to fix it.

If only she knew that she was making a molehill out of a mountain. And yes, that's not an error. She had misgauged, terribly, the severity of the problem. So long has the situation gone unnoticed that acting shy had actually been INGRANED into her personality. It wasn't more of she lacked confidence. Oh no. It was because she subconsciously thought that she MUST act shy. It was more of a quirk.

Rather like Hatake's love and lust for the Icha Icha series. And Maito Gai's rather random screams about youth. And her friend Anko's rather unusual desire to flash her rather decent assets to any man that she met, because she was garbed in fishnet. And a trench coat. And then there's her brushing off of any men that had any form of romantic interest in her, but that was more of personal trauma than a quirk, though Asuma had somehow bandied a group to insist that it was a quirk and demanded that she change it. She shattered their porcelain dreams with a rather devious Genjutsu, making them think that their nuts were cracked with a nutcracker.

Anyway, back on the subject, the act of being shy had been so deeply rooted in the girl's heart that it would take some act of divine intervention or a rather, rather, rather, rather BIG shock. Such a big shock that she'll have no time to act shy, and as her earlier scream proved, she didn't stutter.

"Hinata, could you try screaming?" Kurenai asked. "It's for an experiment.

"E...E... EEE... EEEEEEK!...?" Hinata stuttered/screamed.

_Ah, it's possible to stutter while screaming. Gotta keep that in mind. _Kurenai chuckled. "Alright, time for lunch!" There was a scream in the background, and then a flying Inuzuka landed in the river where Naruto dunked himself multiple times previously. "Ehh..." Kiba gave a sheepish grin. "Sennen Goroshi, anyone?"

Kurenai giggled, before composing herself.

End of Chapter Four.

* * *

A/N : Rather full of crack at the last few paragraphs. Blame the crack fics I was reading. Not me.

Also, about Naruto's sudden mood swings. It's a quirk, when you spend too much time around Mr Hatake, who can go from sedate to damn serious in a second, and Jiraiya, who is constantly on crack near Naruto when training's not concerned, and Sarutobi Juzou, which I keep forgetting to address the man by his damn name instead of surname, who is mostly serious. Hatake's half half, Jiraiya is mostly childish, and Juzou is mostly serious, except where his Icha Icha is concerned, and you get a rather half half volatile Uzumaki.

And I've uploaded the clothes design, just check out the links in my profile. XD


	6. Chapter 5 : Lunch,Mission

I realize I never did bothered with a disclaimer. If you couldn't figure it out from the site's name, then gimme a call so I can go and laugh in your face. It's fan-fucking-fiction dot net. IF I even owned anything I don't think I'll be posting it here. I'll be sitting down behind a chair counting my money. And of course, preferably grinning like a certain loud mouthed blond in canon.

Ah, must not forget the mad cackling too. That accounts for 50 percent of the image.

* * *

Chapter Five : Lunch/Mission

Naruto wasn't sure of where he should have his lunch at. The dango shop? The ramen stall? Or perhaps he should try the Akimichi barbeque shop. Undecided, he strolled along the food sector of Konoha, while the civilians gave him a wide berth. This solved his dilemma. More than three quarters of the shops were out, due to his Jinchuuriki status, and amongst the quarter left, half was out solely due to their food. Rather, solely due to the lack of food, with them being bars, solely for shinobi to mope around and mooch after missions. The half which was left consisted of a bunch of dango, ramen, barbeque, sushi, and oden shops and stalls. Perhaps he should try the oden today. If smell was anything to go by, he'll be returning here sooner than he thought. Of course, it didn't help that his enhanced senses wasn't making him less hungry. His stomach gave a faint growl, and the oden seller chuckled.

He observed Hinata and Shino both walking back to their clan compounds, and his sensei entering the dango shop. The oden would be good, then. Giving the man a few ryous, Naruto accepted the bowl of hot soup and several assorted ingredients. Entering another shop would be prudent after finishing the oden if he wanted to make it through the day, and he was getting a bit tired of ramen. And thus he decided upon the dango shop. Quickly gobbling down the rather tasty and delicious oden, Naruto disposed of it with a basic Katon jutsu, and entered the dango shop.

It was rather dark inside, illuminated solely by a few lamps, and candles on each table. There was a few plants scattered at the corner, and he noted his sensei seated with a rather... indecent woman. Mitarashi Anko. The woman who wore a fishnet shirt and miniskirt without giving a damn that she was essentially flashing to everyman that walked past her when the trench coat fluttered in the wind. The rather free woman, politely speaking. The slut, to be blunt. There were rumours that she had raped some children, but them coming from the Haruno matriarch instantly invalidated the truth. That pink woman couldn't be trusted to say anything but truth twisted so badly until it formed a U Turn.

The evidence? She, like all those kind villages that gave him broken bones, bruises, lacerations, and stabs instead of smiles, had yelled at him a variant of 'demon'. While the rest called him 'demon brat', or 'devil spawn', she alone seemed to have gender confusion and insisted on calling him 'demon slut'. If she couldn't even comprehend that he had the male organs, how could he trust what she said?

"Over here!" Anko waved. "Hey Genin, over here!"

Naruto groaned. He had been spotted. There was nowhere to run, and he had no reason to refuse. And thus, the young blonde Jinchuuriki found himself seated next to his sensei, essentially avoiding the rather... energetic snake mistress, who was already drunk and waving her hands like she was attempting to fly. Naruto and Kurenai found themselves groaning.

"Oh damn." Naruto sighed. "I wanted a normal lunch and now I'm getting sake to my face, even though I'm underage?"

"Old to kill... burp old enough to drink!" Anko slurred. "Drink up! Drink! Now!"

"Uhh, it's lunch, Anko." Kurenai whispered to her friend. "We have to get our missions after this."

"Drink!" Anko snapped, slamming the cup on the table. "Drink, or I'll force you to."

"And how, Anko-san?" Naruto snapped.

"Like this!" Anko slurred, and snakes flew from under her sleeves and immobilized the blonde Genin. Forcing the cup to the struggling Genin's lips, Anko hit a nerve that ended with Naruto opening his mouth in reflex and she forced the cup down... A log.

"Pfft." Naruto chuckled, kneeling on top of the log. "I guess this was why Ero-sensei told me to have a scroll full of sealed logs."

"Ero-sensei?" Kurenai asked.

"Normally known as Ero-sennin, but because of my Fuuinjutsu studies I'll have to call him Ero-sensei." Naruto revealed. "Also known as the star in the sky after he gets pummelled for peeping."

"You mean that white haired man...?" Kurenai gasped. "OHMYGODWE'RESCREWEDANKO! We just pummelled the hell out of a Sannin! Sarutobi-sama will have our heads! The Council will probably demand that we get executed! OH MY GOD!"

"Don't worry." Naruto chuckled. "That man can take lots more punishment than a normal shinobi. And he knows he deserves it. He has... plenty of experience in handling and healing from such wounds. Especially with his teammate... you know? The volatile, drunk, Legendary Loser."

"Tsunade-sama?" Anko burped.

"Yeah." Naruto chuckled. "That time she came to visit she knocked him all the way to Saru-jiisan's office from my apartment because he was attempting to give me a set of his Icha Icha books again."

"So that's why there was this man-shaped hole in Sandaime-sama's office." Kurenai chuckled. "Every time someone asked him he'll have a laughing fit, before whoozing and sending us on his way. Sometimes he'll even choke on his pipe and we'll have to spend five minutes calming him down."

"When Sandaime-sama steps down I guess Jiraiya can give up on being the Hokage." Naruto grinned. "If he did there'll be many man-shaped holes in the office."

"Why?" Kurenai asked. "Why would there be those holes in the office?"

"The gazing ball." Naruto summarized. "If someone like Kakashi or Jiraiya got their hands on it then the entire female population of Konoha is screwed. The ANBU'll probably break down after the Hokage gets whacked out of the window the second time."

"Ah yes." Kurenai muttered, eyes taking a rather murderous glint. "In fact, I wouldn't trust any man with it."

"But the four Hokages were all male." Naruto deadpanned. "Not female."

"But the Godaime would be female." Kurenai chuckled. "No chance of any males powerful enough and good enough to take the mantle."

"Me?" Naruto suggested playfully. "I'll be good enough, eh?"

"Hah!" Anko slurred. "Who'd heard of a Genin Hokage?! We'll be the fucking laughing stock of all the Hidden Villages, god damn it! A fucking Genin Hokage, hah! What, use a Bushin while the other Kages laugh their asses off?!"

"You know," Naruto muttered irritably. "After one year I'll be a Jounin, most probably. And I can't do the bushin."

"Oooh." Anko gave a mocking gasp. "You're genius! One that is only found in a gazillion years! Making fucking jounin in a year! Can't even do a fucking Bushin and yet you crap so much."

"Urgh." Naruto groaned."You remember that I'm skilled in Fuuinjutsu, so I'll make Tokubetsu Jounin easily. Also, while I can't do a Bushin, that's because of my high chakra capacity. However, I can do Kage Bushins. Thousands of them. Now can you retract your snakes? I want to sit down and eat something."

"Spoilsport." Anko pouted. "Come on..."

"Not cute." Naruto snapped. "Snakes. NOW."

"Whatever." With that, the snakes slithered back under her sleeves and god knows where.

Sitting down and resealing the mostly unmarked log, Naruto ordered three bowls of rice and a set of dango with some miso soup. It wouldn't make him very full, but it would fill him up and make sure he wouldn't faint during a mission. He was sure Shino and Kurenai wouldn't let him live that down.

"Some more sake over here!" Anko roared.

"Coming." The storeowner muttered. "Three bowls of rice, a set of dango, a bowl of miso soup, and five bottles of sake."

Naruto chuckled as the Snake Mistress finished/polished off another bottle of sake and added it rather carelessly to the teetering pile of sake bottles next to her. "Anutha bortle!"

Quickly polishing off his rice, and the dango, Naruto drunk the soup, and used the dango skewer as a toothpick. "Not bad." Naruto shrugged, and paid the storekeeper in advance. "And what..."

Naruto was treated to the sight of Mitarashi Anko force feeding her friend Yuuhi Kurenai sake by mouth. And thus, being a perfectly straight boy, right smack in the middle of puberty, with all his hormones going in overdrive, suffered from a rather subdued nosebleed, with him exposed to Jiraiya too often, he had a rather miniscule immunity. Quickly rubbing it off, he noticed that the two, or rather, the one was still at it. Deciding that it would be prudent to protect his honour, and the Kyuubi chuckling a concerto in his head didn't help matters, he left quickly, before giving a rather sinister chuckle and walking out.

Kurenai groaned. That Uzumaki will never let her live that down. Pushing her protesting friend off her, she quickly finished her meal and left quickly, realising that the one hour was almost up with Anko's antics. She noted to herself that it would be prudent if she avoided going to that restaurant with Anko now that she had a Genin cell to look after, and she couldn't afford being drunk, just after lunch. It would have been ridiculous if something happened while she was under the influence of alcohol.

* * *

"So you're here early eh?" Naruto chuckled, as Shino leaned on the wall motionlessly.

"Hinata-san too." Shino intoned. "You're slow."

"Hey!" Naruto protested. "I had to escape from sensei's friend, that Mitarashi. THE Mitarashi, you know?"

"And why?" Shino muttered.

"Err..." Naruto gave a sheepish grin. "You could ask Kurenai-sensei? They were..."

"It would be my fault." Kurenai gasped, cutting off the blonde, and sending him a glare to silence him, huffing and puffing, as she just sprinted all the way to the Hokage's tower, because shunshin and sake didn't mix well, even if there was only a bit of the latter. There was the time when Anko found herself slammed into the wall after she attempted to shunshin, and Kurenai didn't appreciate landing in areas she didn't have control over. "Now, let's get the mission, instead of discussing about my choice of friends."

The trip up the Hokage's tower was uneventful, save for the grumbling Chuunin holding a gigantic stack of paperwork scrambling up the stairs. "God save the Hokage." Naruto chuckled. "Perhaps I should re-consider my career aims considering that there's so much paperwork."

Approaching one floor short of the Hokage's office, they entered the Mission Control Room. Or MCR, as most of them liked to call it.

Then of course, they received the customary lecture on the missions, courtesy of Iruka, who had nothing to do now that the Academy year had ended and was forced to do MCR duty. Naruto chuckled halfway and he started chatting with Kurenai, who was so bored that she almost fell asleep standing, and they ended up arguing about which restaurant sold the best, tastiest and cheapest food. Hinata was staring down at the floor and Shino... Shino was just Shino.

"LISTEN TO ME!" Iruka roared. "STOP CHATTING AMONGST YOURSELVES! LISTEN TO ME GOD DAMN IT!"

"Take a break, Iruka." The Sandaime muttered. "Don't want you hurried to a hospital for hypertension."

"But..." Iruka protested.

"A **BREAK**." The Sandaime emphasised. "Go."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Iruka sighed in defeat, and walked out of the room towards... somewhere.

"Alright." The Hokage, straightened his robes, while he saw Naruto looking at him rather curiously. "What?" Sarutobi muttered irritably. (PS I realise that I gave Sarutobi a name, which is Juzou, but Sarutobi kicks more ass compared to Juzou.)

"Kage Bushin." Naruto surmised. "And the real's probably up there doing the paperwork."

"Ah yes." The Hokage grimaced at the mention of paperwork. "You didn't think I'd have that much free time?"

"Ahem." Shino coughed.

"Ah." The Hokage seemed a bit sheepish. "A D-ranked mission, then?"

Kurenai nodded.

"Let's see..." The Hokage opened the scroll. "Picking the weeds in the Hyuuga Compound, harvesting the food in the Akimichi Compound, capture Tora the cat, shop for the Inuzuka Clan, and babysit the Daimyo's son. And there's cleaning the river, the Hokage's monument, and the sewer."

"The cat." All three members agreed.

"Alright." Sarutobi chuckled. "The target was last sighted near Training Grounds 15."

Passing the scroll over to Kurenai, the Sandaime laughed. "Good luck with Tora."

"Why do I have this sense of impending dread?" Naruto asked, shivering in some unknown cold. Shino repeated the gesture.

* * *

Over the course of the few weeks, they would learn to hate Tora the cat, as Hinata would be the sole person in the team ever to get out of it untouched. Kurenai herself had a few scratches courtesy of the rather rabid cat. Naruto and Shino... After the first mission Naruto never went near the cat unless it was just a Kage Bushin, which was armed to the teeth and generally resembled a porcupine with kunai forming a crude armour. Crude pointy armour that Naruto cut himself on accidentally multiple times. Crude armour he tried to blow up, forgetting he was wearing it. Crude armour, which exploded in his face and left him rather greviously hurt, had the Naruto been but a mere Kage Bushin. Shino just swarmed the cat with Kikaichu and waited on a tree for Hinata.

They had gotten down the art of capturing Tora to such an artform, that they took only 30 minutes everytime. Firstly, Shino would find where the kitten was, with him leaving a female kikaichu's scent on the cat after the second time. Secondly, Naruto would overwhelm the poor kitten with speed, forming a solid wall and herding the kitten towards Hinata, who would pick the cat up. Then they'll just head back to the tower. Sarutobi was amused when he saw the Uchiha glare at Team Kurenai cause they finished the misson earlier than him.

"This is stupid." Naruto groaned. "I WANT A CHALLENGING MISSION!"

"Then work hard enough for one." Shino muttered. "We're still five missions short of 50, the basic requirement for a request to take a C-Ranked mission."

"But..." Naruto protested.

"Shino-kun's correct." Kurenai giggled. "And you're as sharp as always, I see."

"Hey!" Naruto snarled. "I'm sharper than a kunai!"

"Toy kunai?" Kurenai suggested.

"No!" Naruto groaned. "Stop making fun of me!"

"Then stop making us make fun of you!" Kurenai blathered back. "And stop making that face!"

"Then can we just go do 5 missions at once?!" Naruto mumbled. "I can take care of it with my Kage-Bushins."

"Ah yes." Kurenai nodded sagely. "Remind us why it is a bad idea to send a Kage Bushin to farm."

"It's not my fault that the plants are so deeply rooted that we came back half an hour later to find only half the farm done, with all clones out for the count." Naruto grumbled. "And I finished the rest quickly, didn't I?"

"Indeed." Shino muttered. "After a beating."

"I wouldn't count Kikaichu swarming me before falling off a beating." Naruto grunted. "I count me being actually being hurt as a beating."

"It's your chakra." Shino stiffened at the mention of the incident. His father was severely displeased to know that one colony had died, and he had gotten the worst tongue lashing he ever had, the cold stare and the slight hint of disappointment in his father's eyes. Although, his father had proved to be more understanding once he realised exactly who Shino had tried to suck chakra from. The Kyuubi wasn't the head honcho of the Bijuu by being weak. "Too potent for my kikaichu."

"So Shino-kun's teeny weenie kikaichu couldn't take my chakra." Naruto sniggered. "Ha!"

His joy was ended by a kikaichu's rather swift bite on his jewels.

Aburame Shino would grow to curse the day he decided to attack the blonde Jinchuuriki's jewels since he nearly got his squished and roasted, due to the Uzumaki snapping and going all out. That ended up with the Hokage himself personally attempting to restraining the Uzumaki, and Kurenai was panting solely due to the fact that it was physically exhausting to keep up with the blonde Genin, and his inhumane stamina.

Ah yes, Aburame Shino would grow to rue this day, as he dodged another of the enraged Jinchuuriki's swipes and kicks. And he would grow to rue this day very badly, as the blonde got a lucky hit and grabbed the Aburame.

Oh yes, he was so screwed. He screamed in psychological pain as Uzumaki Naruto demonstrated once again, his prodigious abilities in all things shinobi, showing Shino that he did deserve the Rookie of the Year award. The Genjutsu was already terrifying enough. He didn't want to think about what the blond could, and probably would do with Taijutsu and Ninjutsu.

End of Chapter Five.

* * *

A/N : In case you're wondering about why the fuck are there so many useless moments, like the one about the restaurant, surely you don't expect Kurenai to IMMEDIATELY go OMGNARUTOILUBYUH. They also don't immediately go 'OMG Naruto's so hot and I wanna shag him right here and then.' Neither will Naruto go 'OMG I wanna shag her till my brains burst'. I'm building it up slowly, not too fast, and rest assured, not too slowly. Another point. People don't immediately shag after a date. If you don't get what I mean, go out and get a girlfriend/boyfriend. And you know, love isn't instantaneous, unless it's attraction to physical beauty. Which fails, most of the time.

About Hinata stopping her stutter, let's just say that Kurenai gave her a miraculously effective confidence booster course or something, and she stopped. The true reason? I can't type stuttering for nuts. Doing that little bit of stutter during the introductions took 10 minutes.

Now, I'm currently debating on a few members. Fixed members have numbers next to their name, not in order of 'joining'. Those I'm considering have the (?) next to their names.

1. Haku (F) (Uhh, I just like the damned paring?!)

2. Kurenai (I like her. End of story.)

3. Yugito Nii (Nibi no Neko's Jinchuuriki.)

(?) Tayuya (Me likey. But I need a reason to keep her alive, and it's killing me as her introduction will instantly boost this story from T to a M.)

(?) Anko (Rather high possibility.)

(?) Yuugao (Yuugao Uzuki, the possibly-soon-to-be-in-the-sense-of-ten-chapters-or-so-dead Hayate's girlfriend. Of course, she may or may not be his girlfriend in this story.)

(?) Ayame (Err, what can I say?)

(?) Shizune (Bordering on getting kicked off, cause Tsunade will kill him, and so will TonTon the Pig-Nin.)

(?) Koyuki Kazahana (Originally fixed, except no excuse to introduce her unless I do the movie arc, which I didn't watch, and the movie screws the exclusivity of Hyoton jutsus up. I mean, Kakashi, no less, doing a Hyouton Jutsu? Go and rot in hell, you damned idiot of a script writer.)

* * *

(26 June 2008) I'm irritated, twitchy, and generally annoyed. My monitor (Samsung 971P) just gave up on me and I'll have to wait, so I'm stuck with my super old PC, which lacks all my new files, cause the old monitor couldn't accept the DVI data and the HP only has a DVI, and no VGA slot. Thus, updates have to wait, since I haven't uploaded Chapter 6 on FF yet, and thus this'll be the sole update till my monitor is fixed. Which should only take a week, but no promises. My exams are also going to be over in one more week.

Then, as though as to mock me, I read a fanfiction that threw all semblance of normalcy out of the window. For all things logical, Hyouton is restricted as a bloodline.

* * *

(As you can see, I'm rather off my rocker. Be glad I finished these chapters before my exams and it isn't full of crank as a result.) The AN were done after I uploaded the chapter to FF.


	7. Chapter 6 : Wave,Start

Chapter Six : Wave/Start

After the Aburame was healed from the rather short hospital stay, Team 8 managed to finish the last 5 required missions and there they were, fresh from training and some light lunch, as apparent by the Aburame missing his hood and the rather rounded stomachs. It seemed that the Uzumaki still held a grudge over his jewel sacks and had taken it to be his personal mission to remove the hood of every single jacket the Aburame would wear. And thus, they were greeted to the sight of the near permanent tick growing in the Aburame's head, already receiving a spot just above the Aburame's left eye.

Naruto growled, as they passed by the rather hastily mended passageway, while Shino's hands moved subconsciously to his jewels. Hinata gave a small chuckle, while Kurenai had a rather Cheshire grin on her face. This seemingly kabuki play never failed to amuse them. The Hokage chuckled briefly when he noted the expression Naruto and Shino had. "Alright, I guess you guys are here for your C-ranked mission?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Kurenai said, nodding.

"Alright." The Sandaime chuckled. "There's a C ranked escort mission to Wave country. Shouldn't take more than a week. Do you accept the mission?"

"Escort a bridge builder?" Naruto's eyebrows rose. "Not a noble Daimyo, Lord or anything, but a stupid bridgebuilder?!"

"Good eyesight." The Hokage commented, his right eyebrow raised slightly. "And yes, he's a bridge builder, as Naruto saw on the scroll, and Tazuna-san, you can come in now!"

A man garbed in a normal workman clothes meandered in, clearly drunk, with a sake bottle in his hands. "I want shinobi protection, and you give me a bunch of brats?" He snorted. "The bespectacled gaki with the cloak looks goofy. And the blonde'll be a fucking target in the wild, I mean, YELLOW?" (PS, Shino's hood got ripped off, and thus it looked like a cloak.)

Kurenai and Sarutobi-bushin moved to restrain Naruto, being that they knew the Aburame had sufficient self restraint. "LET ME NICK HIM!" Naruto roared.

"Now now." The Hokage calmed the blonde Genin down. "If you kill him it'll be mission over right now."

"I'll just give him a nick and maybe an explosive seal on his beer belly!" Naruto snarled, choosing the very moment to show off his skills in Fuuinjutsu, hands flailing comically. "AND PERHAPS I'LL GIVE HIM SOME SEALS ON HIS EYEBALLS TO HELP HIM SEE BETTER!"

"Calm down Naruto-kun!" The Hokage barked. "Or I'll bar your team from missions for a month!"

"Alright." Naruto sullenly agreed. It had been rather amusing when they found out that the Uzumaki was rather detached to his emotions, and thus he was able to switch from docile to explosive in a span of a second if necessary. If rather, it made the boy an excellent shinobi since you couldn't predict his next move. And by explosive he needed a full ANBU squad to restrain him or the entire town would go up in flames. And craters. And explosions. Lots of explosions.

And even more explosions. Did he mention explosions? Yeah, lots of them.

And so they were, an hour later, fully packed, with their items sealed into scrolls courtesy of the Fuuinjutsu expert on their team. "I say." Kurenai chuckled. "It really is fun on a mission without having to lug things around."

"Ah yes." Naruto agreed. "That, and taking a mission that results in a positively sulking Uchiha and a pink haired banshee screeching at her sensei because he was too tardy and they lost the chance for a mission."

"Indeed." Shino agreed. "Sakura-san is loud."

"Loud is an understatement." Naruto muttered. "That, and Akamaru attempting to bite Sarutobi-bushin because Kiba was irritated took the cake."

"Should we be discussing Sakura-san's decibels and Kiba-san's rudeness behind their back?" Hinata muttered shyly. "It seems rather rude..."

"Who cares." Naruto grunted. "She isn't here... And I spot a spot where a spot of seals would give that drab spot a..."

"And if you do that again I'll give you a taste of my worst Genjutsu." Kurenai threatened. "Stop using spot."

"But you see that puddle?" Naruto pointed. "I want to liven it up with an explosive seal!"

"Oh not again." Kurenai sighed. "Why do you persist in informing the enemy that we've noticed them? Didn't telling Tora your position during the first time make you learn your lesson? You know, all that clawing the cat did to you solely because you were too feisty?"

"Because I get to fight." Naruto chuckled, drawing a seal in mid-air. "Like that."

Activating the seals as the two brothers rose from the puddle, the two found themselves knocked out, burnt, scorched, and charred, unable to react with the huge flames charging at them, while they were extricating themselves from the puddle.

"Whew." Naruto groaned. "That took a lot."

"It took about half, Naruto-kun." Hinata informed, as her eyes changed back to normal. "What sort of technique takes off half of your ridiculously huge chakra reserves?"

"It's drawing seals in the air. Basically, you're solidifying the air, which is a pain in the posterior since the air's not very dense. Then, you'll have to maintain the solidified air, which is another pain. ." Naruto summarised. "If I master it then I'll be able to integrate other seals than the normal into combat easily. And theoretically I should be able to walk on air."

"On air?" Kurenai giggled at the possibilities. "Naruto, send a Kage Bushin to the guards and have them take the two brothers to Ibiki." Then, in nary but a mere second, her slightly jovial visage turned cold, and serious. "And Tazuna-san, explanations, if you will?"

* * *

Sarutobi relaxed in his chair. The Council meeting had gone well, and he only needed to unleash his chakra twice. All in all, a rather fruitful day, and he had managed to get the council to _agree_ that the Uzumaki would be promoted to Tokubetsu Jounin due to the boy's talent in sealing, and Konoha desperately needed Seal Masters. Hell, only he himself and Jiraiya had more than just a fundamental knowledge of seals, and Kakashi... That man couldn't be bothered to learn more than just the advanced courses, and he relied on the Sharigan far too much. As a result, he could use seals, yes, and the seals were picture perfect, thanks to the Sharigan, but he was too deeply rooted in memorization to truly advance and become a master.

So now, all he had to do was to wait for the blonde gaki to come back from his mission, hopefully safe, and promote him. On second thoughts, perhaps he should let the boy become a Chuunin first. 

It would look better, and the Council would have lesser to argue about, since the coots managed to harp on topics long past and settled. Ah yes, that plan would do fine, and it would save him a migraine. Now to process the paperwork first, since there was hardly a chance of the boy failing the Chuunin Examinations, with his prodigious talents. Perhaps he should just take a short cut and use a bunch of Kage Bushins to quickly settle the growing pile of paperwork, but you never knew when the Chuunin assistant or a Hyuuga might come. Then, the old coots would find out somehow, and harp that he didn't do his job well enough, and most likely force him to do something. Usually something bad.

Speaking about Hyuugas, Hiashi's sudden newfound support for the blonde was unsettling for the old Hokage. Who knows what that man might be planning, plotting and generally making Sarutobi's life a living hell from all the plots the stupid clan leaders had got going behind just to boost the power of their own. The Uchiha's plot for more power was found out, and quelled, but at what cost?

Sniggering mentally at the memory of the faces the council had when Naruto's skill in Fuuinjutsu was revealed, and the faces that was plastered on their faces after he unleashed his killing intent _accidentally_, the Sandaime stood up. Oh yes, it was certainly fun to screw around with those pathetically weak civilian council.

Sighing again, the Hokage decided that he needed to stock up on his tobacco, and moved from his seat. Hopefully the paperwork wouldn't increase _too much_ while he was out. Opening his door, and walking down the first set of stairs, he breathed a sigh of relief as no rushing Chuunin holding impossibly high stacks of paper rushed past him.

Speak of the devil. Three Chuunins, each holding an estimated two hours worth of paperwork. Sarutobi sighed. Perhaps he should pen a letter to the Daimyo to ask for the Fire Daimyo's assisstance in dissolving the power mongering council. He was the fucking Hokage, and how dare they demand that he went along with what they wanted. By the name of Icha Icha, he wasn't going to do that.

Now, if only he could convince the Daimyo on EXACTLY why he should do that. Perhaps he should check out some favours Jiraiya owed him. Men tend to listen more to their favourite author, after all. Perverted men the most. Sarutobi giggled, before halting himself. A Hokage, a well respected powerful old man like him couldn't giggle. It was unbenefitting of his image. He had an image to uphold after all, even though his mind subconsciously laughed at the breakdown he had just months previous from the burning Icha Icha.

* * *

"So, basically, Gatou took over Wave, and he killed a bunch of people, and he hates the bridge you are building, and by extension you." Naruto surmised. "Correct."

"Yes." Tazuna sighed.

"So why lie on the mission parameters?" Kurenai said rather crossly. "It's not helping your case any."

"The Wave isn't exactly rich. Even with the Daimyo's help, the most we could afford was a C rank." Tazuna muttered dejectedly. "I wouldn't be surprised if you guys abandon this mission. After all, it is now out of your capacity. Don't worry, I wouldn't blame you, but my cute little grandchild will probably cry for a few days and grow up hating Konoha, and my daughter would probably cry. Don't worry, no one will blame you."

"Save us the guilt trip." Naruto snorted. "It's not working."

"Well, you never know if you don't try." Tazuna chuckled, sheepishly.

"So, team?" Kurenai asked. "Do we go on, or back?"

"On." Shino muttered.

"Surprising Shino, I didn't know you cared for others." Naruto muttered, eyebrows rising slightly. "Alright, same as Shino-kun there."

"Ano... same as them." Hinata nodded.

Kurenai sighed. The Aburame boy was at several times too soft for his own good, but it was undeniable that the boy was an impeccable judge of character, and most of the time his decisions were correct, and reaped better rewards than what they would get if they chose otherwise, as Kurenai found out by experience. And perhaps some light wounds. This mission would be good combat experience for her team, and god knows how much they needed it.

"Alright then." Kurenai sighed in defeat. "We go on."

"Yes!" Tazuna cheered. "Onwards to my super duper bridge!"

"And Tazuna-san." Naruto muttered in a bored tone. "Pull any tricks again and you'll find yourself hanging off a tree. Bound. With a wedgie supporting your weight."

Tazuna clammed up in fear, retreating from the maniacally grinning blonde. "And I'll be sure to attach a timed explosive seal to the tree."

Tazuna almost ran away. Almost being the keywords. Instead, he backed up into Shino, and the kikaichu user stared down at the client, the sunglasses glinting in the sun was the last straw, and Tazuna freaked the man out.

"Let's move!" Kurenai shouted.

* * *

The peaceful journey was stopped one hour later, when Naruto opened his mouth to speak. "Ah! I want to ask you something sensei."

"What is it?" Kurenai muttered.

"Well, why am I placed in this team?" Naruto spoke. "Shouldn't Kiba-san be more suited to tracking than me?"

"Well..." Kurenai mumbled. "A pure tracking team is rather dangerous."

"How so?" Shino intoned, joining in the conversation.

"What happens if we get stuck in a trap?" Kurenai asked. "Tracking specialists will find it hard to escape."

"So that's where I come in." Naruto groaned. "To prevent overspecialization."

"Actually, no." Kurenai admitted. "You're a wildcard, truthfully speaking. You're rather well rounded, with abilities in the obscure branch of Fuuinjutsu as well. So you're possibly also talented in tracking."

"What exactly is Fuuinjutsu?" Shino asked, cutting in. The topic of Fuuinjutsu wasn't well known, as apparent by the ridiculously low number of shinobi that actually possessed more knowledge about seals than pump chakra to explosive notes and they'll go boom. In fact, there were only 3 people that could be considered masters, and only 2 grand masters. For one, the Sandaime, and the Gama Sannin. The sole non grandmaster Fuuinjutsu expert there was Naruto, and even Sarutobi admitted that the boy had lots more latent potential in the field solely due to his insanely high chakra reserves.

"Fuuinjutsu is the study of seals." Kurenai replied. "But I suppose Naruto's a higher authority than me in the field of Fuuinjutsu."

"Fuuinjutsu is the study and application of seals." Naruto explained. "Simply put, you learn about seals, the individual kanji that makes up the seals, how to organize the kanji and create a seal, and how to activate it. It's rather related to Eiseijutsu (Medical Jutsu) in a sense, and Ero-sennin wants me to learn some Eiseijutsu from Tsunade-baachan when she's back from gambling."

"Eiseijutsu?" Kurenai wondered in amazement. "That requires an insane amount of chakra control."

"Something almost everyone can achieve with the proper seals." Naruto grinned. "But these seals aren't perfect. Yet. Besides, those Eiseijutsu are the really really basic type, those academy students can learn. Some light wound healing and diagnosis Eiseijutsu."

"What do you mean?" Kurenai asked. "And I've never heard of seals capable of doing that."

"Ah yes." Naruto muttered, slightly embarrassed. "These seals only work on me."

"Why?" Kurenai's eyebrows rose. "Kekkei Genkai?"

"Not exactly." Naruto muttered. "More along the lines of my chakra's elemental composition."

"You've learnt about chakra elemental affinities already?" Kurenai muttered, amazed.

"And I've got this." Naruto grinned, extracting four chakra cards out of his pocket.

"Where did you get this?" Kurenai's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "This isn't items you can buy with a Genin clearance. You'll need Jounin or higher."

"Hatake." Naruto muttered. "Uses it as a bookmark and rarely bothers to replace it in the book when he takes it out and he prefers to just uses a new one. Did I mention he likes to read at my place for some reason?"

"Ah, I see." Kurenai chuckled. "Well, I should be doing this after you guys become Chuunin, but hell, who cares? The earlier, the more training I can squeeze in, and the better it is for you. Distribute those cards."

Tazuna looked on, before away as the shinobi jargon gave him a migraine. He took another sip from his now empty sake bottle, before reaching behind him to produce YET another sake bottle, from his stash hidden in some armoured pocket.

Kurenai held a card. "Now, all you need to do is to apply chakra to these cards. Fire will result in the paper burning, wind will split the paper, water will make the paper wet, lightning will crumple the paper, and earth will turn the paper to dust. For me, my affinity is fire like most Konoha shinobi, and with a slight dab of wind..." Pushing a bit of her chakra into the card, her Genins saw the paper splitting slightly, the cut running through one quarter of the paper, before bursting into flames. "Now, if my guesses are accurate, Shino-kun would be a water type, and Hinata-chan would be a earth type. Naruto-kun's most likely a wind type, but I'm not too sure."

Shino held the paper out, and true to his sensei's words, the paper became soggy and wet. "Rather fitting." Naruto muttered.

Hinata's hands shook slightly as she raised her hands. The paper crumbled into dust, and she squeaked slightly when the paper disappeared. Even though she was forewarned, she still didn't expect the paper to really turn into dust.

"Alright, my turn now." Naruto grinned. "Watch closely." Applying a slight amount of chakra into the paper, Team 8 was treated to the sight of the paper splitting into four, before one part caught fire, the other became wet, and another crumpled, and the last crumbled.

"What?!" Kurenai yelled, while Shino and Hinata were rather shell shocked.

"Wazzat?" Tazuna slurred.

"Ninja business, Tazuna-san." Kurenai spoke calmly, while her insides were a mess. Her face was impassive, but if someone was skilled in reading the body language, one could see that she was highly discomforted by her new knowledge.

"This is all the 5 elemental affinities." She hissed. "That's impossible. You don't have the Rinnegan."

"But I have a force of Nature." Naruto hinted, laying it on rather thinly. "In my tummy."

"Oh." The rest of Team 8 muttered. They weren't surprised, and after all the Sandaime had to brief them so that they don't freak out. But since it was on a severe need to know basis, Tazuna could just merrily go on his way unaware that the most destructive and powerful Bijuu container was on the team. Who knows what the man might do.

"So it's all these affinities that allow the seal to work?" Kurenai asked.

"It's more of they allow the seal to function." Naruto muttered. "It takes hours to prepare and lasts for five seconds before fizzling out."

Kurenai chuckled as the boy took on a pained expression. "Wasted hours of my time." Naruto moaned. "Hours of preparation and only five seconds before the thing gave up."

End of Chapter Six.

* * *

Totally random Omake. -Revenge is sweet-

"Itachi!" Sasuke snarled.

"What do you want, pathetic little brother." Itachi Uchiha intoned.

"I'm here for my revenge! Hebi, secure the perimeter! Don't allow anyone in or out!" Sasuke shouted.

"Very well, otouto." Itachi nodded.

"I'll be the referee here." Kisame nodded to himself. "Alright... 3, 2, 1... HAJIME!"

Jumping backwards, Sasuke ripped off the bandages covering his arms and applied chakra to the seals, and to his eyes.

Turning instantaneously from the onyx eyes to those of the ruby Sharigan, there was a poof of smoke from the seals on his wrist, and using the advanced precognition granted by the Sharigan, Sasuke Uchiha swung his head down and...

Ate two pocky sticks.

"Sasuke Uchiha : 2, Itachi : 3!" Kisame roared.

"Too slow, otouto. Tsukyomi!" Itachi intoned emotionlessly.

"Arg!" Sasuke cursed, having suffered a 5 second stop, and his reflexes suffered from a minute of slowdown due to Tsukyomi. "Chidori!"

Itachi observed mutely as his hands twitched from the electrical sparks for five seconds, being unable to pick that damned tempting pocky stick up. "You will lose." Itachi said, as he bit off another pocky stick. "Amaterasu!"

The pocky stick in Sasuke's pile burnt up, and precious time was wasted to replace it. Sasuke activated Curse Seal level two, and with a swing of his wings, blew Itachi's pocky away. "Susano'o!"

The great spiritual being reached out and grabbed as many sticks as it could, and dumped them back into the container. Sasuke grabbed his Kusanagi with a hand as his wings fed him the pocky. Activating Chidori, he channeled it down his Kusanagi and took a swipe.

Itachi felt his hand jar from the electrical sparks, and his eyebrows knitted together. "Kage Bushin."

"You're not the only one who knows that! Kage Bushin!" Sasuke growled. "Bushin Daibaikuha!"

"Too slow, otouto." Itachi muttered, sealing the exploding clone with Susano'o. "You'll never beat me without these eyes."

"Rubbish!" Sasuke snarled. "Time to use the Dobe's technique! Orioke no Jutsu-Kai!" (Sexy Technique, Modified.)

Itachi exploded in a shower of noseblood.


	8. Chapter 7 : Wave,Encounter

Chapter Seven : Wave/Encounter.

(I was planning/gunning for 'Cow Encounter', or the 'Moo Blues', but this story is technically more serious than Naruto : Rewrite, so I couldn't integrate them. PS, if you don't know, I like to refer to Zabuza as a cow due to those funny arm protectors he wears.)

Naruto kicked the ground, mind detached from his surroundings as he pondered over another seal formula the Gama Sannin had taught him before the self proclaimed Mega Pervert ran off again. _Probably to peep again… _Naruto groaned mentally. _At least he left behind something for me to work on. I swear, if he didn't, I'll pull a Hatake on him and give him a Sennen Goroshi. Maybe this'll make him less lazy, and will launch him into an assured beating with him flying into the female side of the hot springs. Maybe I should blindfold him first, before I give him the Sennen Goroshi.  
_

He was so deeply in thought that when they needed to take a boat in order to cross the ridiculously large river, he almost fell into the river, and only the timely grab Kurenai made saved his ass from getting drenched. Shino just chuckled darkly. Naruto grinned. This meant that Shino was still sore over his defeat at his hands, and was probably fuming inside. This would make the usually stoic Aburame more expressive, even if it was expressions of hate against the blonde. After all, the team was silent. Shino and Hinata, already half of the team, rarely spoke, and Naruto was going nuts from the lack of interaction, and Kurenai was in deep thought herself and wasn't talking much.

The trip was mostly silent, save for the random chirp of the birds. There was a light mist enveloping the bridge, the faint smell of nature travelling to Naruto's highly sensitive senses. As they broke through the rather dense vegetation, the boatman prodding the water with his oar. Suddenly, the imposing silhouette of a bridge appeared overhead.

"Wow." Naruto drawled sarcastically. "You have a need to compensate for something?"

"It's inefficient." Shino pushed his sunglasses up. "Ten meters in the air is unnecessary. Six should suffice."

"There might be some really tall ships." Tazuna offered. "And we have no money for a drawbridge style bridge."

"A retracting bridge?" Naruto offered. "Place half and half under rails."

"Too much maintenance, time and labour needed." Tazuna answered. "We need the bridge cheap, and fast."

"Alright, you win." Naruto muttered. "I'll carve some strengthening seals to the bridge supports while we're at it."

"What would they do?" Tazuna asked. "These 'strengthening seals' of yours."

"They'll allow the bridge to take more weight than stone, steel and concrete can allow. These legs will probably be able to take one or two explosive notes and survive." Naruto surmised.

"Shh." The boatman spoke. "Gatou patrols this area frequently. Keep your volume down."

"Alright." The Shinobi nodded.

* * *

The hour long trip was calm, as the Aburame turned to... to... do something with his bugs. The Hyuuga heir just bowed her head, deep in thought, with her hands moving occasionally to stimulate a body. By the looks of it, she was doing something in relation to the Jyuuken. Naruto was scrawling seals on a blank scroll, designing a more suitable strengthening seal than the standard one for a bridge of that caliber. The standard form would probably make it too hard to withstand any form of strong winds, so he needed some other seals to make the bridge slightly 'bendy' instead of totally hard, so as to withstand any strong waves and wind. Perhaps a slight expanding seal coupled with a pulse seal would do the job?

Yuuhi Kurenai stared forward. She wasn't one to believe old wives tales, and she had after all, scoffed at most of the superstitious. But when you're in a job where your life is hanging off a weak string, every form of mental support helped. God help her if she turned into something like the chain smoking Asuma or the Hentai no Sharigan Kakashi. And worse, she might turn into a spandex wearing, fire of youth sprouting eccentric genjutsu expert. She'll stab herself and end her life honorabably before that. She couldn't help but gag slightly when she imagined herself running around in red spandex screaming at the top of her lungs. Reading a small orange book that served to disturb no one's peace was way better than that... destructive behaviour.

"Are you alright, Kurenai-sensei?" Turning around, she saw the half amused, half concerned visage of the blond Uzumaki.

"I'm alright." Kurenai nodded. "Just thinking about what I might become years in the future, after gaining more experience." Then, as though it was merely but an afterthought, she opened her mouth to speak. "Maybe something like Gai-san."

"Ah." Naruto nodded sagely. "He is certainly eccentric, far more than Ero Kakashi. I still have no idea what possessed the man when he shoved hundreds of those horrible neon green spandex suits with those horribly squished orange coloured leg and arm warmers into my wardrobe. He might have been a tad drunk since he mistook my pantry for my wardrobe. It took days to get rid of all those compressed suits."

"But he IS certainly a genius." Naruto nodded. "If the Bingo Book was ranked by Taijutsu alone, he'll be ranked SS-Class, with a flee on sight of something green orders."

"Or something wriggly on a head." Kurenai giggled. "Imoumushi no Gai. Gai of the Caterpillar."

"Ano..." Hinata interrupted. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Gai." Naruto muttered. "Maito Gai, the most demented Taijutsu specialist with a fetish for spandex."

"Ah." Shino muttered. "Otou-san says to keep away from that man."

"Otou-sama wants Gai-san's head." Hinata giggled at a memory. "After Gai-san decided to change all of the Hyuuga males clothes into those green spandex."

Naruto had to clamp a hand over his own mouth in an attempt to silence his mirth. He succeeded, and managed to chuckle while panting. "Oh Kami. Imagine all the Hyuugas running around in spandex. Then, they'll turn around to glare at you and dare you to giggle."

"Naruto-kun." Hinata berated. "It's my clan you're making fun of."

"That makes it funnier, since you laughed too." Naruto pouted childishly. "And since you laughed I've no need to apologize! Ja..."

"You can't go 'Ja Ne' on a boat you fool. You've been hanging around Kakashi-san way too much." Kurenai groaned. "Where'll you go? Onto the surging river?"

"Hey!" Naruto shouted, softly. While it might have sounded like a contradiction, he had to contradict himself as, well, silence was necessary. "I resent that! I can walk on water!"

"And then you'll go plonk inside." Kurenai muttered. "Remember your attempt on that small rapid."

Bristling with indiginant fury and righteous anger, Naruto blushed a crimson red in embarrassment. "A... A fly distracted me!"

"Be silent." The boatman hissed. "If you wanted to make so much noise I might have used the motor instead."

"Sorry." Naruto squeaked.

* * *

The boat hit the bank lightly, the occupants surging forward unsteadily due to the momentum and the queasy ride, except for Naruto. (Tegaigan, remember?)

"Kuso." Kurenai cursed as she stepped on her own feet, slightly disoriented from the boat ride.

"Thanks." Tazuna bowed slightly to the boatman.

"No problem, Tazuna-kun." The highly strung boatman answered. "Now go quickly, and finish the bridge. Good luck."

"I'll finish my super duper bridge and I'll invite you over for a drink!" Tazuna promised, as the boatman rowed his boat away quickly.

* * *

The walk to Tazuna's house was surprisingly peaceful. However, while Tazuna was totally relaxed, believing that nothing could happen so close to home, Team 8 was fully aware that it was just but the calm before the storm. Shino seemed as stoic as usual, but now his back was ramrod straight, his eyes peering straight ahead, while his kikaichu dispersed from his feet, acting as scouts. Hinata kept her hands inside her coat, her fingers lightly tracing the edge of the exposed shurikens, ready to fire them, while her Byakugan was active intermittently, in order to conserve chakra. Kurenai seemed relaxed, but her muscles were slightly tensed, ready to react quickly and nimbly to any situation that might happen. Naruto seemed the most relaxed and carefree of the group, but his senses were in over drive, his advanced hearing and nose giving him view near Byakugan proportions. Of course, the range was smaller, but hey, it took no chakra, so who was he to complain? His hands were ready to reach for his ink set, to deal some Fuuinjutsu to the enemy.

In the team, Shino was a far ranged attacker, with Hinata and her Jyuuken acting as the close ranged combat member. Kurenai and Naruto was more of supporting attackers, with Kurenai's prodigious talents in genjutsu and Naruto's Fuuinjutsu. If needed be, Naruto could be the far ranged, mid ranged, closed ranged, and the hand to hand combat specialist. After all, he was the only one in the team that actually bothered to train his strength, as Kurenai and Hinata suffered from the limitations of the female body. And Shino just wasn't suited to muscle building, since his weapons were just mostly kikaichu. He wasn't going to throw anything, being that the Kikaichu would probably be able to serve the same function, perhaps even better, since they could fly and guide themselves. Way better than a static kunai, so all he did was to train his Mental, not his Physical aspects.

(Lil A/N before you bash me : I'm not trying to be sexist here, but males generally gain muscle easier. Or so it seems. Besides, just put it down to the stuff that is of no to little relation and I can't be bothered to explain. BUT if you insist, it's something to do with the steroidal male hormone, testosterone, that female bodies lack in great abundance. It has anabolic effects, which has got to do with muscles, bones, and all that. Male bodies tend to produce 40 to 60 times the amount of testosterone female bodies produce. For more info, wikipedia's your friend.)

"Get down!" Naruto snarled, as his hearing told him that there was a sharp object approaching from high speed, as evident by the slight disturbance in the peaceful cacophony of the forest, the little 'swish' telling him plenty of information for such an easily dismissable sound. Shino grabbed Tazuna and pulled him down, while Hinata flattened Tazuna's mountaineous backpack. Kurenai dodged to the side, for faster access, while Naruto aimed carefully. _Now... Qi to the arm, and PUNCH!_

The blade flew upwards, whistling through the hole present in the blade. A man appeared, and jumped, grabbing the blade and landing behind them. They turned quickly, and Kurenai gasped. "Momochi Zabuza!"

"Glad to see that people still remember me." Zabuza chuckled grimly. "But I'm not here for you. Now hand over the man!"

"I'm afraid I must decline, Momochi-san." Kurenai replied, pursing her lips in grim determination. "We're in the middle of a mission. Would you let us pass?"

"And so am I." Zabuza replied. "It's the old man or your life, Magen no Tatsujin, Yuuhi Kurenai of Konohagakure no Sato." (Magen no Tatsujin : Master of the Demonic Illusions.)

"How about yours, Kiri no Oni." Kurenai replied coldly. (I'm rather irritated that Google turns up none of Zabuza's romanji nicknames, so I had to create one myself, but it remains the same, ole Demon of the Mist.)

Zabuza gave a throaty chuckle. "Very well then, Yuuhi-san."

"Stay back!" Kurenai ordered. "Guard Tazuna!"

"Hai sensei!" The genin moved to form a triangular formation around Tazuna.

"Doton : Doryuu Heki!" Naruto yelled, slamming both hands, handseals freshly done, on the ground. Walls of protective earth rose, granting some protection from any stray attacks.

"Kokuangyou no Jutsu!" Kurenai barked. (Journey into black darkness technique. The one Nidaime used versus Sarutobi in the manga.)

"Feh!" Zabuza spat. His eyes were useless, and he wasn't going to give her the advantage. "Kirigakure no Jutsu!"

A light mist descended, blocking Kurenai's vision. "Kuso!" She swore, and she summoned two Kage Bushins along with five normal Bushins.

"8 Targets." Zabuza's disembodied voice rang out. "Throat, spinal column, lungs, liver, subclavian artery, jugular vein, kidney, and... your heart. Now, which to choose..."

* * *

"He's a master of the silent killing technique." Naruto whispered. "Be on high alert."

"Hai." Shino and Hinata nodded.

* * *

Kurenai strained her senses, hoping to catch Zabuza. A soft squelch behind her - the Mizu Bushin was dealt with a stab to the head quickly, before it had a chance to form, and she ducked the slightly whistling Kubikiri Houcho. She ducked to the left, and she felt the wind cut her face as the blade slashed pass her. Taking the break between attacks, a quick shuriken dealt with the Mizu Bushin.

"Fuuton : Daitoppa!" Kurenai yelled, and dispelled the Mist.

"Suiton : Suirou no Jutsu." Whirling around, she saw the grim visage of the chuckling nukenin. "Did you think that the Mizu Bushins were for nothing?"

Her eyes widened, just as the water prison solidified. "Run!" She yelled to Team 8. "Get to safety! The Mizu Bushin has limited range..."

She was silenced by a chop to the back of her neck, courtesy of Zabuza. (Uh, either Zabuza was too stupid in the manga or what, but you know, you should knock out someone dangerous to you first before engaging another.)

* * *

"Sensei." Naruto growled. "You two stay back."

"Hai, Naruto-kun." His teammates nodded, knowing that other than him, the others stood no chance in the mist.

Zabuza turned, noting the genin approaching him. He snorted, sick and tired of such pathetic showoffs thinking that they were capable of winning him. Him. The A ranked Nukenin. The unranked genin versus the A ranked former ANBU Captain. Their naivety was... overwhelming, for a lack of a better word. Did they really think that they could win a seasoned shinobi like him? Well, it was true that theoretically, a Genin cell should be able to take down a Jounin. But that was false. A mirage. An illusion. Many factors were unaccounted for, like the much needed combat experience, the general conditioning of a Genin and a Jounin, the former living a rather luxurious life in this peaceful age, the other old and battle harderned.

"Pfft." Zabuza snorted. "You've haven't even killed a person yet, and you dare call yourself a shinobi? In my old village the Genin examination..."

"Used to be killing the friend you've lived together with for a long time." Shino muttered. "Until the Kiri no Oni appeared."

"So you've heard of me?" Zabuza gave a short barking laugh. "I'm honoured. Now, blond-gaki, listen to your sensei and retreat. I've no time to waste on the likes of you."

* * *

Naruto's eyes narrowed. The world had seemingly slowed down, before bursting into a flurry of action.

* * *

Zabuza was definitely surprised, if his face was anything to go by. One moment Blond-gaki was there, the other he was right in front of him. If it wasn't for his finely honed reflexes, from the years of training in the technique of silent assassination, he would probably be missing something. An arm, or perhaps his head, even, if the blond's movements were anything to go by. The blond was glowing a slight hint of green, a testament to the sheer amount of chakra the blond had. (Green is the colour for chakra in the anime, and for my story due to colour purposes that yellow, which is the manga's colour, cannot fulfil.)

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto spat. "You've hurt my sensei, and you've stepped on the pride of Konoha. Die."

"Come back when you're older, Genin-gaki!" Zabuza growled, swinging his Kubikiri Houcho at Naruto's neck accurately. Naruto dodged, sliding backwards, before launching a hail of kunai at the nukenin. "Tajuu Kunai Kage Bushin!" Naruto growled.

Zabuza dodged, using his Kubikiri Houcho as leverage, and the hailstorm of black passed by him. "Feh. Good technique, but the user sucks." Zabuza snorted, before jumping again as the kunai swung back.

"Wires, huh?" Zabuza chuckled. "Not bad, kiddo."

Zabuza grabbed the loose wire, planning on jerking the wire backwards and cutting Naruto's hands, hopefully dislocating something along with it. Maybe even lop off his fingers. Zabuza quirked an eyebrow as Naruto grinned. "Raiton : Dendoushiki Se!" (Lightning Release : Electric Current.)

_Shit!_ Zabuza swore, as he released the bundle of wire. Too late, and as Naruto twisted the cable to ensure more surface area received the shock, Zabuza felt his hands go numb. "Good one, kid." He growled. "You win this time, but I'll be back."

Zabuza grabbed his Kukibiri Houcho by his feet, kicking it into his holster and jumped off into the trees, leaving just but a crater sized hole in his wake.

"Uh..." Naruto groaned, as Hinata moved forward to assist him. "Just peachy."

"Keep quiet and rest, Naruto-kun." Hinata berated. "You're running rather low with that flashy display of Chakra. Remind me why pumping out chakra for intidimation fails."

"It was done subconsciously Hinata-chan." Naruto groaned. "I'm not that stupid."

"Kage Bushin." Naruto muttered softly, and a clone appeared, moving to wake their instructor. "Keep away Shino. She might think that she's still under attack." Naruto cautioned, as the Aburame was moving forth to rouse Kurenai. Nodding, Shino stopped and took several steps back. Naruto still remembered with a wince what happened when he accidentally knocked the Gama Sannin out without Jiraiya noticing, which would have been a miraculous issue in itself, but hey, there WERE miracles, and it happened once. Naruto didn't want to taste the whirling air only Rasengan could create right in front of his face again.

Naruto reached behind for his pouch, grabbing a strengthened version of soldier pill, the only type that ACTUALLY worked on him, and chewed the bitter pill. Ye gods, how he hated his advanced senses right now. The acrid smell wasn't any better, even though they snapped him wide awake.

He had to custom order the damned special pills, solely because they'll kill anyone that had anything below Jounin level chakra reserves. What's more, those 'Jounin' pills barely did anything for him, just about ten percent. AND so, he had to get the even more potent version, which didn't cost a pretty penny. He ended up breaking the first pill down to the bare essentials and making his own, after Sarutobi approved, of course. And as a result of his special make, he received a steady income from the Ero Sannin and Sarutobi became some sort of a middle man, who sold what Naruto made to the ANBU. Then his cash came raking in. But that was going off a tangent instead of what he was supposed to be doing, so he shook his head and broke himself out of the zero counting madness.

Kurenai woke explosively. A hail of senbon assaulted his halplessly innnocent Kage Bushin, which disappeared in a plume of smoke in order not to feel all those senbons sticking through him. Not that he'll feel more than one, though. "Maa... sensei." Naruto drawled. "It's safe now."

Kurenai blushed slightly at the relevation, and moved to pick up her senbon needles, scattered as they were from the throw.

"Err... Can we go now?" Tazuna squeaked, after the dangerous display of the shinobi arts. If his voice wasn't enough, his knees were shaking slightly and his knuckles were white, grabbing his sake bottle like his safety blanket.

End of Chapter Seven.

* * *

Longest AN Section in this fic currently, mostly explanations.

* * *

Explanation : Wondering WHY, and HOW Naruto finished off Zabuza so quickly? Simple, the man got arrogant. He underestimated Naruto, thinking that our favourite blond Jinchuuriki was just like a normal genin, weak, pathetic, aweful. If people like Sakura and Sasuke went up against him they'll be dead. Immediately. He's a fucking A-ranked Nukenin, former ANBU Captain after all. And we all know how our resident insane-but-not-insane Uchiha Itachi, Mr ANBU Captain, decimated his clan. Sure, he had Madara's help, but he had definitely done something himself. It isn't all just about Madara after all.

So, bottom line, Zabuza miscalculated, thought Naruto was a one trick pony, with his speed and Kunai Kage Bushin, and thus he grabbed the wire expecting a mere genin to not know how to use any suitable Raiton Jutsu, and then didn't get the wire off as fast as possible since he didn't expect a Genin to know how to keep those haphazardly massed wire on him, and to even maximise the surface area, which I might add, just involves twisting the damn wire tight.

SO, if Zabuza took it seriously, he would have been suspicious of Naruto's sudden tricks. Then, when he sees Kunai Kage Bushin he'll stop pulling stops, since Kunai Kage Bushin's a rather hard technique, being that Holier-Than-Thou-Bow-Down-To-Me-And-Teach-Me-Everything-And-I-Only-Accept-Yes-Sasuke-Sama-As-The-Answer-Mere-Mortals-Cause-I'm-Holier-Than-Thou-...(You get the Idea)... Emochiha didn't know the technique. Then, there'll be the Mizu Bushin, and all that tossed into the mix.

AND about Kurenai losing, she's a rookie Jounin. Kakashi survived a fucking war as a teen. There ARE, WILL BE, AND THERE IS differences. Yuuhi Kurenai is a Genjutsu specialist. This means that her ninjutsu, taijutsu, and all that other Ninja stuff aren't very good. Kakashi has a Sharigan. Another big difference, since Kakashi can just copy Taijutsu styles off Gai when the idiot's showing it to the world. Then we know that Kakashi is smarter than Shikamaru, who is a genius in his own right. Kakashi graduated at 6, became Chuunin at about 7, yadda yadda. I believe that Yuuhi Kurenai didn't rise that fast. Well, you HAVE to believe that. AND even with all these, Kakashi lost, not as quickly, but still quick. What made you think that Kurenai wasn't getting the gitters from leading her first Genin cell against an A-ranked nukenin? Hell, Kakashi was a former ANBU Captain, and she isn't!

Hell, if you read my fic carefully, you'll realise that she's a fresh Jounin. Not very experienced. And we all know that experience goes a long way. Hatake Kakashi was born in turbulant times. It was probably part of his instincts to fight, being involved in a war before puberty, if the lack of an adam's apple in Kakahi Gaiden and his short height is anything to go by. Yuuhi Kurenai is 19 in this fic. She's young. The war was nearly over when she was still wearing diapers, being that Kakashi is 27 in this fic, and he was about 12 during the Kakashi Gaiden saga. This meant that the war ended about 15 years ago, and Kurenai was only around 4 at that time. She was born in a time of peace, so to speak. She didn't face the harsh cruelties of a war. Kakashi has more than enough experience to go head to head with one of Pain's bodies and possibly win, if my deductions are anything to go by. Yuuhi Kurenai? Dead. Owned. Massacred.

Comparing the two is like comparing Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Itachi at age 13. Big difference. Although not as much as the difference between Emochiha and Massachiha. (Emo + Uchiha and Massacre + Uchiha, if you didn't get it.)

And thus, if you flame me or wank about how Kurenai lost so easily, read the above. Again. I'll just ignore you.

Then about Naruto's chakra pills. Assuming that a Jounin level soldier pill healed only 50 percent of a typical Jounin's reserves, being that filling 100 percent is slightly unsafe, as there's a risk of chakra overload if it filled a full 100 percent and the guy had 20 percent left. Then he'll have an extra 20, which will wreck havoc. With his body. It'll throw his control out of the window, and possibly make his jutsu explode in his face and all that dangerous stuff. Thus, 50 percent is safer, and so they'll use it. Then, we know that Hatake Kakashi probably has around 2 to 3 times the normal chakra reserves of a normal Jounin. That guy wasn't a captain for nothing. Assuming that it's 2.5 times, Kakashi admits that Naruto has four times the effective chakra available without counting those suppressing the Kyuubi's chakra IN the MANGA, where the Kyuubi is a big fat grinning face. In the manga, Naruto already has more chakra than a normal Jounin when he graduates. Thus, Naruto has effectively 10 times the chakra of a normal jounin. That was after the 2 and a half year time skip. Even with his pathetic education, he had 10 times the chakra at 15.5 years old. He's only 13 here, but he has been training from young, don't forget. Thus, it's perfectly justified, being that the Kyuubi here is even co-operative, and hence BY RIGHT, he should be having MORE than 10 times the normal Jounin's chakra. Making it 10 was me trying to make him less overpowered. Hell, he should be having around 15 times the chakra a normal Jounin has.

On a slightly related side note : I read all them reviews, so keep them coming in. Helps me churn out these chappies faster.

* * *

Mini rant : I'm sick and tired of NaruSasu filling up all the fucking pages when I'm trying to find a good story WITHOUT NaruSasu in it. AND THE #& High School fics should go and burn in hell, being that nearly 90 percent is either so cliche that it became a cliche on it's own, or it's so badly written that I nearly stabbed my own eyeballs in fury.

This begets the question. WHY THE FUCK are there SO GOD DAMN MANY High-FUCKING-School fics?!

One or twice is fine. The massive amounts of junk High School fics, the highest CRAP : GOOD ratio of nearly a 1000 : 1 title holder, disgusts the hell out of me. Sure, I might be exaggerating, but if you want a high school fic get off your chair and go to school. I'm literally twitching right now as I search for a new fic I've not read yet.

The killer : If you care enough for your fic you'll at least make sure that your summary is short, succinct, and make sure to correct the typo errors before uploading. For Kami's sake, this is not a chat room. Spell properly and don't use abbreviations. This is NOT MSN, no matter what your delluded brains think.

AND I'm about to just kill something cute and fluffy when I realised that there were such things as 'What happens when there's MSN in Naruto.' and 'What happens when Naruto characters have internet.' fics, as they plain suck. Some(READ : MOST) of them aren't even funny.

* * *

Something more light : Omake - Like Teacher, Like Student.

* * *

Most people knew the Gama Sannin. Hell, most males held him in high reverence for purely his books. Jiraiya was the safest man on earth, being that most people didn't want to stop the flow of those absolutely wondrous books. Even more people knew him for his perverted tendencies. And nearly all women's fists knew the Sannin's face on physical terms.

What only some people knew was that Jiraiya was already a pervert before he graduated from the academy. It was probably all the beatings he took from his teammate Tsunade that made him have his iron constitution.

What ONLY four people knew, was that Jiraiya had been corrupted by Sarutobi. Sarutobi had always kept a book of smut in his shinobi pack while they were out, for some light reading when the journey was getting boring. Jiraiya, curious, had stolen the book and promptly exploded in a gesyer of nose blood.

What only Orochimaru and Jiraiya knew, was that Orochimaru had been the one to cultivate Jiraiya's linguistic talents by forcing the hyperactive brat to sit down and read some classics. Orochimaru remained in denial up to today, that he had indirectly cultivated a smut writer's talent. He refuses to be associated with the no talent hack with only a nose for such dirty things.

What only Sarutobi knew, despite all appearances, that it was the best mistake he ever committed. He giggled as he flipped the page, the sun catching the orange cover. Oh yes, not locking up that pouch was the best mistake he ever had.

* * *

Well, that's all folks.


	9. Chapter 8 : Wave,War

Chapter Eight : Wave/War.

* * *

A/N : In the previous chapter, Naruto ran out of chakra rather quickly, for some readers. Here's my explanation. He was glowing with **_pure_** chakra. And then previously he whittled away half of his chakra with the seal on air. Even if he regenerates half, he only has three quarters. He'll have plenty of chakra, most which are burnt off when he glowed green. I mean, you can see how much chakra Raikiri uses, and that's only for a palm. Naruto was glowing pretty much green, and it's the **_whole body_**. As a result his chakra ran out.

* * *

The journey to Tazuna's house was quiet. It seemed that Zabuza didn't expect anyone to resist him at all, and he thought he would be able to finish them easily. Too bad for him he underestimated Uzumaki Naruto, and had to suffer from a pair of unresponsive hands. It was a miracle how that man still managed to hold his zanbatou without hands. Naruto chuckled. It would prove helpful for his abilities if he could pick up a gigantic weapon without hands, thus freeing them for MORE weapons, or Jutsu.

There was a woman tending to the few flowers in the front yard, and she looked up, before smiling demurely at the sight of the procession. Tazuna smiled back, before hugging her. "Tsu-chan I'm home!"

"I'm not blind otou-san." The woman grumbled playfully. "But perhaps your shinobi friends need to rest?"

Naruto detached his mind from the boring conversation. As informative as it was (READ : Useless.) it didn't help anything.

The house was on the large side, having a small left wing attached to a central chamber. The placement of the windows and the generally drab and monotonous paint indicated that it was an inn. Or rather, it used to be an inn. By the look of the well trodden pavement, it was fairly successful as well, if the condition of the rock was anything to go by. The fragrant smell of the flowers hit his nose, and he smiled slightly. It was probably mostly buttercups, something the generally grey area needed, providing a slight relief from the monotony.

Shino prodding him shook him out of his thoughts. Glaring slightly at the apparently amused Aburame, Naruto scowled and walked into the house, with Kurenai and Hinata already exploring the former inn.

* * *

Naruto rose from his slumber, mind mutely noting that there wasn't the usually totally aweful screech of an alarm clock waking him up. Those were times he cursed his advanced senses. If anything, he needed to find a way to suppress them if necessary, since they were a double edged sword. Sure, they might be totally useful, but if the last time he fainted due to a stink was any indication, it was a weakness. A fatal weakness, if a proper shinobi knew how to take advantage of them. Giving a mental prod to the napping Kyuubi, Naruto sat up on his fuuton.

_**What do you want? **_The Kyuubi growled in irritation.

_Is there a way to suppress my senses? _

_**Uh... Gimme a few seconds for my brain to get in gear...**_

_So even the great Kyuubi, the Lord of the Thirteen Hells, Empress of the Dark, and more titles have to laze about in the morning for a few seconds like us humans._

_**Shut up. **_The Kyuubi growled in irritation. _**Or I won't tell you anything.**_

_Alright, alright._

_**As per my memories, you could use the Inuzuka's Flash Suppressor to safeguard your sense of smell, but you'll need to adapt the technique for your other senses. Or you could simply make up a seal that absorbs any information your senses absorb when they're above a certain level. Personally, in my most humble and valuable opinion, you should use a seal, since it uses lesser chakra than a jutsu, no matter how small it is. And you don't have to keep refreshing it once it runs out.  
**_

_And I think your ego's too big for your own good, Ran-chan._

**_I'm going back to sleep._**

_Aww, does the great Kyuubi need her beauty nap?_

The Kyuubi growled, before sending a pulse of electrically charged youki into the pipes, which he had learnt that they represented his chakra circulatory system. Naruto had a spasm, due to the slight electrical shock, but the pain was more mental than physical. _**I'm not called a force of nature for nothing, Naruto-chan.  
**_

* * *

Yuuhi Kurenai woke up rather sore, as apparently Hinata had decided in the middle of the night that her sensei was a good bolster and had apparently hugged her tight, if their current position/her sore body was any indication. Groaning slightly, the red eyed Jounin rose silently from the floor next to her fuuton, using a Kawarimi with a proper bolster to get out of the tight choker hold the apparently no longer physically weak girl had her in.

Checking her Kunai pouch, she noted in slight amusement that she forgot to restock it with the ridiculous amounts of kunai and shuriken Naruto had sealed into scrolls for them. Kunai was cheap. Kunai in bulk was very cheap. Kunai in ridiculous numbers costed as much as sweets do... ridiculously cheap. Where Naruto had gotten the money was a mystery, but they had paid him back, so it was all right and dandy. The Kunai was of a higher than average quality, too, with the centre of gravity in the perfect place and a very sharp cutting edge.

Contrary to popular belief, a Kunai, if used properly, was more effective and easier to use than a Shuriken. A shuriken had four small blades, and it spun. Even if thrown perfectly, it only entered about one inches into flesh maximum. Any shuriken larger than two and a half inch in diameter was too impractical and inaccurate for shinobi use. Sure, there were Fuuma Shuriken, but these didn't care much about accuracy, not that having four gigantic blades wouldn't damage much. A kunai, however, could be thrown as large as they got, if the workmanship was decent. She had heard about the Akimichi clan throwing a positively huge Kunai, enlarged by some clan jutsu, as a ballista. It broke through the Iwa defences easily. A kunai could also be used as a dagger, something Shuriken cannot be used for. Also, a kunai just simply had more weight to it, allowing for a higher velocity to be achieved, and thus, even more damage. However, Shuriken was easier to throw for Genins and most Chuunins, simply because it took years of experience to learn how to properly use a kunai. Even the slight difference in the grip caused a change in the effectiveness of a kunai, unlike a Shuriken, where the difference was negligible.

Pretty much, a shuriken had a inherent limit due to it's structure, while a kunai's limit lied in the forger, and the user. If anything, the Yondaime Hokage, the fastest man to grace Konoha, and probably the world, used Hiraishin Kunai. Not Hiraishin Shuriken. It was a major boon in kunai business after the Yondaime started using kunai along with his jutsu in the war, what with him being promoted to the Hokage in a flashy and boring ceremony. The poor man had been positively flustered when the kunai store Union presented him with a rather large check for his advertisement of the tool.

And as a result almost all Konoha Jounin exclusively carried kunai. Kurenai chuckled when the Uchihas protested it, being that they used, or rather, they had to use shuriken for one of their Uchiha Jutsus. They were pretty upset that they were being left out of the loop, as Uchiha Shisui put rather eloquently one day.

Kurenai restocked her supplies, and made herself a mental note to ask Naruto about the seal. Perhaps he could make one that instantly supplied kunai once the pouch emptied, but by the looks of what sealing was, holding an object in stasis, it would probably take a hell load of chakra to keep the seal active and replenish the kunai when necessary.

* * *

Shino was rudely awakened by the sun shining into his sensitive eyes. Growling slightly, the stoic Aburame rose, if only to to get out of the accursed sun. There was a reason why they wore sunglasses, after all. Having Kikaichu in their bodies made their eyes more sensitive to light. He growled again, as the curtain was apparently pulled back by a clip that wasn't there yesterday. Naruto had obviously done this to irritate him, and he had succeeded. He would be in a world of pain, if the Aburame had his way, but remembering the last time he ordered a Kikaichu to chomp on Naruto's jewels, he decided against it. Strongly.

* * *

Hinata woke up irritated. Someone, by golly, had the sheer audacity to rob her of her most comfortable bolster. Then the situation hit her, and she blushed a bright crimson, which could fight with Kurenai's crimson eyes and possibly win. She was no longer in Konoha, in the Hyuuga Manor, and she had used her sensei for a bolster. She fainted from the revelation, a squeak leaving her frozen mouth.

* * *

Kurenai was greeted to a wafting smell of oil, grease, and eggs as she walked down the stairs silently, as all good shinobi did. Quirking an eyebrow, she damn near giggled at the sight of the normally feral Jinchuuriki wearing an apron and slaving over the stove. It took all her excellent hold over her emotions not to laugh as the whisker like birthmarks screwed up in concentration. Those same whisker marks which gave the young shinobi a slight feral look was making him look totally ridiculous in this situation, and Kurenai wished that she had bought a camera.

"The omelettes are done, and if you stand there any longer they'll go cold." Naruto muttered, before growling slightly. "And it's not funny, dang it! Haven't you seen a man cook before?"

"I didn't know thirteen years old counted as a man." Kurenai quipped. "I thought it was supposed to be eighteen."

"Old enough to kill, old enough to be a man." Naruto reasoned.

"Alright." Kurenai conceded the point, before devouring the positively delicious omelette right in front of her.

This was the time Shino and Hinata stumbled down the stairs, still looking rather bleary eyed. Naruto and Kurenai chuckled at the still slightly sleepy duo.

* * *

The sun was shining rather high in the sky, and Tazuna didn't go to the bridge, being that the last of the materials were still being delivered. As such, Tazuna had been knocked out for the count, as evident by the copious amounts of liquor in front of the man. Kurenai led her team to a more quiet area in the house, yet still near enough to protect Tazuna.

"Alright." Kurenai paused, as though unsure of what to start with. "As we know, the A-Ranked nukenin Momochi Zabuza is injured, but he'll definitely be back soon. Naruto, how long does that Jutsu last?"

"About five days." Naruto chuckled. "I ended up throwing too much chakra into the jutsu and overloaded it, upgrading it from a D rank jutsu to a C rank jutsu, by the sheer amount of chakra used. But if the fact that he has another scent on him is not just by coincidence, then he has a partner, and it'll only take three days with another person's care."

"So I've three days to train you F-ranked Genin to fight a A-ranked Ex-ANBU Captain." Kurenai chuckled/groaned. "With any luck, we'll win."

A chirp, along with a persistent tapping on the window broke them out of their reverie. Kurenai slid the sliding glass window open, and the falcon swooped in.

They tensed. It was instinctual, being that the bird was a Konoha carrier falcon, used for urgent messages of utmost secrecy. The comical mini Hitai-ate the bird wore on the neck would have looked utterly ridiculous on a normal pigeon, only served to make the falcon even more imposing... Well, more imposing than a bird is, but still, it commanded respect... slight respect.

Kurenai, with practised ease, applied chakra to the little scroll the bird carried in a irregular manner, and she quirked an eyebrow in amazement when she noticed the Uzumaki detecting the change in chakra. Perhaps she could teach him some Genjutsu, with him being so sensitive to chakra. The scroll gave a slight hiss, as the 'key' fit the 'lock' and it opened up. Picking the now enlarged scroll, she had a grim visage. These scrolls were not cheap. These scrolls were definitely not used for trival matters. Whatever it was, it was big, and it was nearly certain that she wouldn't like it.

There was a war about to occur. The feeling of dread descended upon her. She still hadn't forgotten what had gone on during the war. Not that she was old enough, but the sheer damaged Konoha had suffered had been ingrained deeply into a conscious as she grew up in a slightly war-torn Konoha. Konoha had gotten back on it's feet stronger than before, but she couldn't forget the sheer horrors she saw. It was depressing, and she certainly didn't want to wish it on anybody, especially two of the more innocent Genins right in front of her. Naruto... Naruto probably knew more about pain and suffering than her.

The scroll had been brief, but the severity of the situation hadn't been lost. If anything, the short and consise message only furthur enhanced the feeling. The scroll was simple.

-_Wave is about to be engulfed in a civil war by Gatou of Gatou Shipping Corporations. Mission has been raised to S-rank via Daimyo-sama's order, with prevention of war as supreme objective. Primary objectives include the elimination of Gatou, which has threatened a Konoha nin, and the elimination of the bandit camps. (Kurenai noted mutely that there was Team Gai and Kakashi written originally, but were crossed out.) ANBU Team 3 is en route, and will reach in one day after this message reaches your hands, if there are no interruptions. May the Will of Fire guide you._

_Sarutobi Juzou,_

_Sandaime Hokage_.-

* * *

-Flashback-

Sarutobi turned when he heard the knocks on his door. He closed his eyes, making himself calm down from all his emotional turmoil, before booming 'Enter!' loudly. The door opened, and Hatake Kakashi, along with Maito Gai entered. Maito Gai was still his obnoxious self, and was doing something stupid with Kakashi repeatedly ignoring the eccentric man. Sarutobi twitched in irritation, his face darkening slightly.

"Silence."

The effect was instantaneous, as the normally jovial Taijutsu centred Jounin schooled himself into a stoic expression. Sarutobi gave himself a small pat in the back. He hadn't lost the intimidation he possessed years ago.

"As you know, Team Kurenai has been dispatched to the Wave on a C-Ranked mission." Sarutobi paused, before adding, "And for Team Kakashi, the mission you might had gotten, if you were earlier."

Kakashi sweat dropped as he imagined what might had occured had his team been here with him. Without a doubt, the Vengeful Duo, as Kakashi named them, Sasuke and Kiba would send Kakashi a glare.

"It has just been a day ago when they set off to the Wave ostensibly, to protect a bridge builder from bandits and their ilk. However, we have received information that they encountered two Chuunin Level nukenins just a few hours into their mission, which have been promptly defeated, and handed over to Ibiki-kun. By the fact that no reinforcements were requested, and Team Kurenai is not back in the village, we can conclude that despite knowing the risks, they decided to carry on with the now B-ranked mission. Futhur reports from our Hyuuga Border Patrol squad that they had encountered an A-ranked nukenin, Momochi Zabuza, and won, if only barely." Sarutobi exhaled some of the smoke, his pipe filled with his most potent tobacco.

"Say no more, Hokage-sama." Kakashi interrupted. "This is urgent. I volunteer my team."

"You have to understand the rest, Kakashi-kun." Sarutobi sighed. "The worst thing is, intelligence reports from Jiraiya-kun indicate that there's a heightened level of activity in Gatou's ranks, and he has been actively hiring more nukenin and bandits. There's also new evidence that he plans on laying waste to the remnants of the Wave, levelling the area and rebuilding a city under his rule from scratch. Also, those under his employment has attempted to capture one of Konoha's shinobi, which were just patrolling the area. As the shinobi of Konoha, you should know what that entails."

"They have threatened us, Hokage-sama." Gai spoke, his normally cherubic voice emotionless, cold, with a hint of anger behind it. "For this, Gatou will perish."

"Indeed." Sarutobi sighed again. "While I may have full confidence in Team Kurenai, especially with Naruto-kun on it, it's still rather dangerous. As such, I've decided to send Team Kakashi and Team Gai..."

"Saru-sensei!" A frog perched on the windowsill croaked in Jiraiya's voice, which greatly upset the unaware Maito Gai. "New intelligence from my spies indicate that there are a couple of, at highest, B-Ranked nukenin, in Gatou's employment!"

Sarutobi's eyes hardened. "Cancel that. ANBU Team 3 is now excused from normal duty and will be sent in Team Gai and Team Kakashi's stead. Send the message via falcon, immediately! Now Gai and Kakashi, keep this to yourselves and perform your duties as per norm. This is an order."

-Flashback End-

* * *

Kurenai sighed, and turned to face her team. There was grim news to be relayed, and she hated being the messenger.

She sighed again, and composed herself, getting her struggling emotions back under her iron grip.

"What was the message, sensei?" Naruto asked, his voice cold and serious.

"Summarizing it, this mission has been upgraded to S-rank by the Fire Daimyo, and Wave is about to be engulfed in civil war by Gatou. Prevention, and suppression of the war will take utmost priority, and sub objectives include elimination of Gatou, and the destruction of the bandit camps. ANBU Team 3 will be our back up, and they'll arrive in a day." Kurenai replied.

"Oh." Naruto muttered eloquently, taking in the news. Hinata promptly keeled over from the fact that they were on a S-Ranked mission, while the Kikaichu Shino controlled were buzzing in nervousness.

When they had recovered, Kurenai led them out of the house. "It's safe to assume that we'll have a three day timeframe which we can train as much as possible. As for Hinata, you already have excellent chakra control, so we will be focusing on your physical power. Follow the instructions on this scroll and don't overexert yourself. Shino, I don't really know how exactly to train you, but I think you could do with some Hand to Hand combat training when someone breaches your Kikaichu, so take this scroll and go practise. Naruto... I don't really know what to train you in. Your aptitude in Hand to Hand combat is far superior to mine, and you probably know much more ninjutsu than me having Hokage-sama, Jiraiya-sama and Kakashi-san as one of your friends, so the only thing I can do is to train you in Genjutsu."

"Hai, sensei." Naruto grunted. "So where do we start?"

"Well, firstly, what Genjutsu do you know?"

"Kokohi no Jutsu (False Place Technique), Magen : Narakumi no Jutsu (Demonic Illusion : Hell Viewing. The basic Genjutsu Kakashi used on Sakura in the manga, and possibly this story too.) and the Henge." Naruto replied. "Although my Henge isn't an illusion, per se."

"Tell me, have you heard of Jubaku Satsu?" (Tree Binding Death. The Genjutsu Manga Kurenai always uses.)

Naruto grinned.

End of Chapter Eight.

* * *

A/N : Kukukuku... Something big's going on, and I ain't telling ya!

About the Shuriken VS Kunai thing, that's my take on the issue, so don't bother flaming me about it.

Mini rant : I've no idea why so many people stick to canon ages and use that as a reason not to include people in stuff. This is Fanon, not Canon, so why the hell should we give a damn as to what Bakamoto does? Of course, highly logical ages shouldn't be ignored, like Tsunade's.


	10. Chapter 9 : Wave,Contact

Chapter Nine : Wave/Contact

Kurenai was totally taken unaware when the blond genin learned the rather hard Genjutsu in lesser than two hours. God damn it, it was supposed to take more than a day to reach that level of aptitude the boy had! Even she took three hours to reach that level, and she was naturally talented in Genjutsu! It wasn't fair, but it might had been linked to the boy's extremely potent chakra. Hell, she had even thought the tree was semi solid, even though it was just but an illusion!

It might also be due to the boy's sheer amount of chakra and Kage Bushins. After all, she didn't have the sheer amount of chakra the boy could throw around like nobody's business.

She groaned. That boy was an absolute monster of a shinobi, having being trained in the ninja arts since young. Give or take a few years, he ostensibly could overpower the Sandaime at his prime easily. His chakra capacity was just out of the charts, his ninjutsu was already far superior to hers. Of course, what else could one expect when you had three ninjutsu specialists as your friends, with Sharigan no Kakashi having copied more than a thousand jutsus, and the Professor was just self explanatory. The Gama Sannin had also been well known for his ninjutsu, especially the infamous Doton : Yomi Numa. His Taijutsu was also excellent, though she might... scratch that, she needed the Taijutsu expert Maito Gai's aid in selecting an appropriate style for the young Genin.

It was then the boy solved her Taijutsu woes and freed her to guide the other less stellar-than-him members. "Kurenai-sensei, could I have the rest of the day off? I want to read my Taijutsu scroll."

"Oh, you have one?" She was genuinely surprised at the revelation. "Alright then."

Naruto nodded, before moving into the forest to practise on his own.

"Now, for Hinata-chan..." Kurenai mumbled to herself, as she walked in the direction the Hyuuga heiress had gone.

* * *

Naruto groaned. He was in a world of pain, something the stupid scroll failed to mention. God damn it, would it have pained the guy to give a warning that unlocking the final 'gate' would result in all his pores seemingly catch fire, inflame, and sear. Moments like this made him curse his far more advanced senses. It certainly felt as though a particularly sadistic person dropped him in boiling water. He was lucky he had placed the sound suppressing seals on the god damn bag before hand.

Something clicked, and Naruto grinned. The last stage was finished, and the bag exploded from the superheated air contained inside, the strained seals putting up a futile struggle against the gigantic forces. The blast of superheated air seared the surroundings, hitting his nose with the smell of burning ozone. He grimaced slightly at the smell. He would need to get the seals he had discussed with the Kyuubi applied on top of the Shiki Fuuin seal as soon as possible, along with a few conversion seals and regulation seals he meant to use together in one shot to reduce the time spent resting.

He decided that it would be prudent to wing it right now than to seek permission. So, after hollowing out the ground beneath a tree using Kage Bushins, he sat himself down in the large man-made, or rather, Bushin made cavern. Then he slammed the papers containing the new seals on his tummy, and sent a pulse of information to the Kyuubi, and pushed his chakra into the paper.The kanji spread from the paper, flowing down like liquid mercury to the seal on his tummy, and started joining it.

He fainted.

* * *

Kurenai paced. She was worried, her eyebrows knitted together. Oh, she had no cause for it, but it came as a rather nasty unneeded side effect of having three Genins under your care. You simply worried. It wasn't, and it wouldn't be the first time Naruto overexerted himself and ended up sleeping in the training grounds. It was perfectly acceptable, being that he was tired and couldn't make his way back without falling over in exhaustion midway.

The problem was, they were in the middle of a S-Ranked mission. You simply don't go and fall asleep in hostile areas. Sure, he had his tenant to take care of him, but she couldn't help but be worried. Calming a rather hysterical Hyuuga heir the first time was enough. She didn't want an encore.

* * *

Naruto groaned as he felt the rush of Youki in his systems, which had always been an efficient alarm clock. Snapping his eyes wide open, he grinned as the pungent smell of earth had been lessened, and he almost leapt in joy. Holding his hands in the familiar Ram seal, he used the usual amount of chakra, and almost gave a Fox-of-Death mode Kyuubi worthy evil grin. There had been five more clones per unit of chakra, as the Kyuubi had put it rather eloquently.

What that implied was that his chakra control had improved, without the irregularly emitted Youki to mess any technique up. This meant that he ostensibly could get started on Eiseijutsu.

Grinning like a madman, he leapt out of the cavern.

(A/N : Perhaps an explanation would be prudent. The Shiki Fuuin is the master seal, linked to the Hakke no Fuuin, Shiki, and the Hakke no Fuuin is regulated by two Shishou Fuuin, which occasionally opens the gates located in the Hakke no Fuuin to allow a limited amount of the Kyuubi no Kitsune's youki to leak out, which would be slowly converted by the host's own chakra circulatory systems. Due to the fact that it was just three seals, slammed on top of each other with various on-the-fly fixes, it wasn't error free. The seal was prone to occasional hiccups, which had started hiccuping more and more often, which lead to Naruto's chakra control being thrown out of the window and off a cliff. And possibly off Mount Everest, as well, if there was one in the Naruto world. Then his chakra control will climb with unprecedented speed back up Mount Everest, the cliff, and end near, but not at the window. Repeat this five times a minute and there you get it.

What the regulation seals do, is to basically act as ANOTHER buffer. They feed chakra constantly to the conversion seals, which do the labourous job of changing Youki to Chakra, and filter it slowly into Naruto's chakra, for the lack of a better word, pool.

And about the suppression seal, they are applied on TOP of the Shiki Fuuin. Why? The fox gave him the senses. The senses are linked to the fox. And I like it that way.

What they do, is to monitor the information coming to Naruto's advanced senses, and lower the 'volume' of any large amount of information, so that the amount of light/sound/smell/taste/pain does not exceed a certain level, enabling Naruto to fight in all conditions, and not fall prey to any jutsu exploiting the enemy's far more advanced senses. Like Farting Technique.)

* * *

Kurenai twitched. Her student had once again taken her as a bolster, and had pinned her down so much, that her hands were at her side and unable to form the few handseals required for the kawarimi. _I'm so getting another room tomorrow._

Yuuhi Kurenai twitched again, as her student snuggled beneath her.

* * *

Naruto landed softly, and he was genuinely surprised when almost nothing had been disturbed, save for a couple of ants that scurried away from his shadow. Hell, he didn't exactly know how he was standing on blades of grass. That wasn't anything impossible, but the fact that he did it subconsciously was more of a miracle than a testament to his skills. And indeed it was, as suddenly something seemed to break and Naruto dropped a little, his sandals finally touching ground. "That was... weird." Naruto grunted, before sprinting his way back to the cottage. _Its... dawn? Goddamn._

Then, unused to his new found strength, he leapt too high, and crashed into a tree, fainting.

* * *

Haku treaded the undergrowth lightly, making her way through the light covering of grass. She stopped, pausing briefly as her senses, honed from the years of avoiding Onins, picked up a scent. Straining her ears, she heard sounds of smooth deep breathing sounds, a stark contrast to her own and Zabuza's, which were sharp, short, and shallow. Every start and end was clearly distinct, but for that person in the woods, it was unclear. It was as though his breathing had no stop, nor start. It was like water, smooth, flowing, with no break. Startled by the sense of a curious rabbit rubbing against her leg, Haku was broken out of her reverie.

(A/N : I was tempted to put La-La Land in place of reverie. For some reason the phrase stuck with me.)

Cursing slightly at her sudden blank out, she couldn't help but scowl, as she realised that the herbs required to heal that electric shock was in the direction of the breathing sounds. She frowned, before taking a step forward.

* * *

"...up. Wake up." Naruto groaned, opening his eyes. His nose picked up a fragrant scent, and the unmistakable smell of a girl, and his advanced sense of touch detected that she has holding/shaking him by his shoulders. He tensed slightly, yet not enough to garner her attention, when he noted that her hands were those of a shinobi. What greeted his eyes, for want of a better word, was an otherworldly beauty.

Warm, yet shielded chocolatey eyes, guarded, yet revealing. Her luscious hair, soft, fluid, cascaded down in waves of pure silk, her bangs framing the delicate features that made up her face perfectly, accenting it, but not overpowering it, complementing it perfectly. Her skin, while pale, didn't look like the Haruno's sickly looking skin, and had a healthy tint to it, and instead of making her look bloodless, only served to enhance her beauty.

Naruto's eyes almost became cold and serious when he recognized Zabuza's scent on her. He managed to suppress it, pushing it down, and making it seem as though he had not recognized the scent.

"You'll catch a cold if you sleep out in the wild." Her voice, soft, and melodious, was clear and mesmerising, like the song of a nightingale.

* * *

Haku smiled slightly at the boy. Here he was, the boy that managed to injure Zabuza-sama so badly with just a D ranked Jutsu, and she couldn't do anything to him. She had tried, oh yes, but she couldn't gather the guts to. The boy radiated danger. Not in the sense of the demented type of danger Zabuza occasionally produced, but the cool, calm, collected, and confident type of danger. It was, for a lack of a better word, just pure and unadulated constrained danger.

Haku prided herself on being able to read a person with just but a mere sight. The boy was a master of his emotions, his pleasant face not betraying any emotion, seemingly open, yet guarded. The boy was certainly handsome, his face, calm, composed, lacking any trace of baby fat, giving him a mature look. His whisker like scars gave him a slight feral look, yet not making him seem beastly. His features, while not without slight imperfections, were as good as one as young as him could get, without becoming feminine. His face, with those brilliantly azure eyes, combined with his whiskers, were simply just regal looking. If she didn't know better, she would have assumed that he was some sort of nobility, or even, in possession of a lineage of kings, and queens. She didn't know just how close she was to the correct answer.

(A/N : If you read the chapter where he meets the Kyuubi, you'll realise I stated that Uzumaki Kushina was a princess. So, technically, he WAS a prince.)

* * *

Naruto smiled back. "Well, I wasn't exactly sleeping. I crashed into a tree and fainted."

Haku blushed slightly at the boyish smile, and grinned, despite herself. "So you're a shinobi, then."

"Yeah." Naruto replied. "I assume that it was my Hitai-ate that gave it away, wasn't it?"

"Indeed." Haku nodded.

"So, what is a fine lady like you doing out here in the wildness on such a morning?" Naruto muttered.

Taking the momentary pause, Naruto quickly scanned the girl for any sign of weapons. The girl was clad in a pale blue yukata, plain, yet bringing out her natural beauty. There was no sign of any weapon other than the two pins holding up the girl's hair, and the single senbon hidden, rather cleverly, in the hem of her obi. It had been weaved under the folds, which would not be revealed, if not for his advanced sight, having managed to pick out the glint of the steel.

Naruto smiled slightly. The girl was of no threat to him, a quick poke to the neck would be able to knock her out immediately. If needed be, he would reduce the weight seals to zero first. Then it would be but mere child's play to knock someone out. Especially someone who wouldn't be expecting him to move so quickly, being that he didn't reset them during his fight with Zabuza. As ashaming it was to admit, he had been so overcome by rage that he had simply forgotten to turn them off.

"I was gathering some herbs." Haku replied.

"Ah, I see." Naruto nodded sagely. "Could I help?"

"Well, I need these few types of herbs..."

* * *

Naruto moaned, as he stretched, getting that elusive crick out of his back. He had cursed the fact that using Kage Bushins seemingly transferred the crick to him. Many fold.

Haku giggled slightly, while Naruto shot her a playful glare. _Why is it that I find myself more relaxed with the enemy than my supposed allies, my fellow Konoha-nins. I bet Oji-san or Ero-sannin would explode in peals of laughter if they knew..._

_Oh, shit._ Naruto groused mentally. _If they saw me with her I'll probably never hear the end of it._

"Thank you." Haku muttered demurely, bowing down to him.

"It was no trouble." Naruto grinned. "Besides, I never did get your name...?"

"Haku." The girl smiled. "Yours?"

"Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto replied. "But just refer to me as Uzumaki Naruto."

"Ah, alright." Haku nodded.

Naruto smiled, leaping onto a branch soundlessly. "See you... Onin-chan."

Haku tensed.

* * *

A/N : Whose Yon Daddy! (Gets mauled)

If you didn't get it, try yelling it out loud. Rather short chappy. X.X


	11. Chapter 10 : Wave,ANBU

Chapter Ten : Wave/ANBU

A/N : Why so slow, you ask? I've got point A, and point B. The in between needed to be fleshed out, and I had a semi-block. So it's gonna jump around a lot...

Naruto leapt off the tree, and landed softly on the ground right in front of Tazuna's house, and he sent a burst of chakra to his seals, re-activating them. Naruto chuckled silently to himself when he realised that all Haku would be able to see was just but a slight blurring before he disappeared in sheer speed. His muscles had ached from the sudden overuse, but well, it was all in the name of protecting the cilent. It wouldn't do if he actually led the enemy to their base, afterall.

He chuckled as he realised that his speed had increased exponentially after the opening of what could be considered the 'last gate' of the Qi technique. If anything, that technique, instead of robbing him of the ability to conduct chakra well, being that his mental energies suddenly increased/shot through the roof, it actually made his control slightly better. That, and Qi added to his physical strength exponentially... He wouldn't be surprised if he could overpower even Tsunade of the Sannin.

(Mini A/N : Why, some may ask. I quote not directly from the book, being that it's in chinese. A brief summary would perhaps suffice. If insufficient, Google it. Zhang Wuji, the guy who had the un-mastered version of the Qi version, the 'last gate' still not unlocked, survived a drop down a cliff with only broken legs. He did land in a pile of snow, but it isn't very thick. His Qi managed to allow him to bounce off the small pile of snow and land from a tremendous drop with ONLY broken legs.

Also, in another series also by Louis Cha, a person could make paper travel quickly and directly while in sheet form. The previous statement might be a bit confusing, so I'll elaborate a bit. What the person did, was to push Qi into the book, and make it travel straight, yet falling down right in front of the person it was supposed to go to. Not that there was insufficient Qi, just showing that the Qi could make the book turn directions IN MID AIR. Qi can also make wooden swords cut through a lot of stuff. Including, but not limited to extremities. Which are limbs, by the way.)

* * *

Yuuhi Kurenai groaned, once again. Somehow the Hyuuga heir had her tight hold enforced even while asleep, and she had to wriggle like a lowly worm to get out of the girl's grasp, and even then, she had to endure some pain as her clothes rode up and went tight around her armpits. Kurenai straightened her clothes, before moving out of the room, hopefully to grab a bite or two, pausing slightly on the steps as her ears picked up a slight distortion.

Her hands moved towards her kunai holster and she slunk into the shadows of the morning.

* * *

Shino observed mutely as his Kikaichu notified him of an object approaching at rapid speed, too quick to be tagged and identified. As his bugs cross referred the information with some of his father's most experienced kikaichu, he made his way down the stairs, ready to hold off the enemy, even for a while, if Gatou's band of merry thugs were approaching. After all, it was tried and proven that a Genin was more than enough to take down at least twenty bandits, even if the person was the dobe of the class. The Rookie of the year was expected to be able to take down fifty at bare minimum, and a hundred on average. Shino had no doubt that he would be able to take down at most a hundred before he collapsed, and for that stamina freak of a team mate, he simply had no idea.

A thousand, perhaps?

* * *

Hinata groaned again as she realised that she had hugged her teacher in her sleep, if the fact that there was the distinctive scent of lilies Kurenai seemed to have hanging around her. Deciding that she should wake up and practise what Kurenai taught her yesterday, she tensed when her ears picked up a slight hiss, and she activated her Byakugan.

* * *

Naruto quirked an eyebrow, his senses picking up the heightened amount of chakra in the house, before chuckling slightly, realising that it was to be expected, with him not exactly announcing his presence.

* * *

"Uhh..." The nondescript brown haired ANBU spoke hesistantly, his blank mask inaccurately reflecting his turbulant emotions. "Taishou?"

"Yes?" The sole person with a decorated mask asked, his face never turning backwards for a moment, as their legs disappeared in blurs.

"Why did Hokage-sama allow that... Genin team to remain even though it's a dangerous situation?" The man spoke.

"Think for once, baka." A purple haired ANBU kunoichi grunted. "Who's on the team?"

"Well, there's Yuuhi Kurenai, the green jounin (Fresh, New, Rookie, Yadda Yadda.) who specialises in Genjutsu, the Hyuuga heiress, Hyuuga Hinata, the Aburame heir, Aburame Shino, and... Oh." The man muttered, blushing slightly behind his mask. "The Uzumaki."

"Hokage-sama has full faith in Naruto-san." The Ghoul Masked ANBU Captain replied. "And so does Kakashi-sempai."

"Kakashi-sempai?" The sole kunoichi gasped. "_The _Sharigan no Kakashi?! The man who copied over a thousands Jutsus in the war?!"

"The one and only." The captain had a decidedly amused tone. "Kakashi-sempai... Also goes by Ero no Kakashi."

The only shinobi that hadn't spoke up almost choked on his laughter. The poor blue-haired guy nearly crashed into a tree from his lapse in control.

* * *

Hyuuga Hiashi strode down the Konoha streets, back straight, arms by his back, the very picture of nobility.

"Hiashi-sama." The Branch house member bowed, and Hiashi promptly ignored the man.

Let it never be said that Hyuuga Hiashi was rude. Hyuuga Hiashi was a polite man. It was that he was in a rush, and he reasoned that if he was in a god damn rush, politness could be damned. Unfortunately for him, being the head of the Currently-Most-Noble-Clan in Konoha, with emphasis on _Currently,_ if the glares sent by the sole surviving Uchiha meant anything, he had rules to follow. The first was : No running in peace time.

The rest could be damned. Hiashi hadn't bothered, and burnt the list after he saw the first, before glaring at the elders that actually drafted it up.

But he still had a reputation to uphold. Sighing mentally, Hiashi attempted to run and walk at the same time.

* * *

"But why the faith?" The kunoichi questioned. "He is but a mere Genin."

"Technically, he is." The captain answered. "That is, literally, he isn't."

"What rank?" The brown haired shinobi asked.

"Tokubetsu Jounin." The Captain paused briefly, hanging on a branch for much longer than necessary. "Probably high Jounin to low ANBU if he trains to his limits these few months."

"Tokubetsu in...?" The blue haired shinobi queried.

"Fuuinjutsu." The Captain replied curtly. "If he pulls his Genjutsu abilities up, he'll be a Jounin, or even, an ANBU in no time."

"On a scale of 1 to 5?" The kunoichi asked.

"His Genjutsu rates at 1." The Captain gave a faint smile, hidden under his mask. "But his ability to detect and break Genjutsu is unparalleled, even versus the Sharigan."

"For real?" The brown haired shinobi stuttered. "You must be shitting me!"

"Language, Buta." The Captain smirked. "As for his other stats, I believe his Ninjutsu stands around 4 to 5, his Taijutsu being 3.5 to 4, his Stamina is probably 6, his speed ranges from 3 to 5, being that I've never seen him with his weighs off before, his Fuuinjutsu probably around 4.5."

"His other statistics?" The brunette asked.

"I guess I could rate his Strategy at 4. His physical strength probably at 3 to 4, his stealth is at 5.. Or rather, used to be at 5. It dropped to 4 due to his massive stores of chakra, and his Kekkei Genkai is pretty much unknown. His chakra control probably rates at High Chuunin, but taking into consideration that he has _THAT_, it's like saying he has Tsunade's control. He probably has increased it to Low Jounin now."

"Wow." The kunoichi whistled. "He could probably give me a run for my money. How ungodly is his stamina to rate at a 6 in a scale of 1 to 5?!"

"He could probably outlast ANBU Team 8. In total. Those stamina freaks damn near broke down the first time." The Captain chuckled. "He made Jiraiya-sama AND Hokage-sama collapse from Chakra Exhausation, when he was merely winded."

"WHAT?!" The shocked blue haired shinobi, for the second time that day, nearly crashed into a tree.

* * *

Shino gave a small smile as his bugs reported that the blur had slowed down, and was identified as a certain Uzumaki Naruto.

"Who's that?" Kurenai asked, appearing by his side, emerging from the shadows.

"Naruto-kun." Hinata replied, walking down the stairs.

"Indeed." Shino nodded in affirmative.

Naruto opened the doors, and he entered not a moment too soon, as four blurs emerged where he once stood.

"ANBU Team 3." Kurenai quirked an eyebrow. "This is... early."

"Hai." The Captain spoke. "Now if you don't mind, my men are in need of supplies, and food."

"Come on in." Kurenai nodded. "They're allies, Tazuna-san!"

* * *

"Food's served!"

"If I may comment, Yuuhi-san, your... student has reduced Kage Bushins from a skill to be revered to... something cheap." The ANBU captain chuckled. "He makes it look like the normal Bushins... in terms of chakra usage, that is."

"He likes to abuse them." Kurenai sighed. "Well, it's nothing as bad as using a powerful technique to propel a boat."

* * *

Somewhere, in a unnamed village, a certain peeping white haired Sannin sneezed, inciting cries of fury, and while taking his due punishment, thought. _Someone must be thinking of me. Probably something bad._

(Don't get it? Well, this in-joke came from a Naruto filler episode where Jiraiya and Naruto propelled a boat with THE FUCKING RASENGAN. I spluttered like a fish out of water.)

* * *

"Well, the food's not gonna wait for you." Naruto grumbled, twitching slightly. "It's not my fault that I've enough chakra to pull this off." He groused.

* * *

Hiashi groaned as he reached the Hyuuga Manor. His leg was numb, from the two conflicting orders sent to it, to walk, and to run. He almost trotted like a horse, but he was the god damn picture of NOBILITY, so he managed to catch himself before the Hyuuga pride would have gone to the dogs. No offense to the Inuzukas, of course. They were too valuable an ally to piss off and alienate.

The Hyuuga elders were totally another matter altogether. What would he pay to get those old cronies off his back... Perhaps he might just convince the Hokage that the elders were plotting something and perhaps the Hokage might just allow a semi-Hyuuga Massacre to occur...

That is, if the Hokage would. The old man was behaving rather like all typical old shinobi, suddenly gaining a immature respect for life in their last few years, and seemed to think that it would serve to lighten their guilt... Not.

Whoever thought that should be brought out and a blunt Kunai horribly stabbed into him. Multiple times.

And a Hakke Sanbyaku Rokujuisshiki (Eight Trigrams Three-Hundred Sixty-One Palms) with a Hakke : Kaiten up his posterior, Sennen Goroshi Style.

It would be a merry day, indeed. Hiashi cackled evilly.

* * *

Sarutobi Juzou sneezed, his mucus shooting out of his nose at dangerous speeds and generally tainting his premium Icha Icha book.

* * *

Hiashi felt oddly amused and satisfied when he heard a sudden screech, in that unmistakable Sarutobi-voice, from the direction of the tower.

* * *

"So..." The ANBU captain clasped his hands together, tummy slightly rounded from the meal. "I guess some introductions are in order, huh?"

"Anyway, I am known as Tenzou." The Captain surmarized succintly. "The purple one's known as Neko, the brownie is Buta, and blues over there is Okami."

"Buta!?" Naruto laughed, choking on his drink, as the indigant ANBU member glared at the blond genin.

* * *

"Madara-sama." Pein gave a curt bow to the cloaked figure. "We have... encountered a set back in our plans."

"It's the sudden loss in funds, isn't it?" Madara growled. "Where is the list of new members? We need someone to replace Kakuzu... urgently."

"Would it be wise to kill him, Madara-sensei?" Uchiha Itachi spoke for the first time, emerging from the walls. "He has talents Akatsuki requires."

"I would be a fool not to recognize it." Madara spat. "Perhaps a lesson would be sufficient. Itachi-kun, tell Kakuzu that Pein wants to see him in this room immediately."

"By your leave, Madara-sensei." Itachi gave a sweeping bow, his face seemingly engraved in stone, giving away no emotion.

"What about the situation in Amegakure, Pein?" Madara turned, facing the sole holder of the Rinnegan.

"Hanzou is dead." Pein reported curtly. "I have taken over."

"Excellent." Madara's voice revebrated around the room. "Step up on the shinobi training system."

Their conversation was abruptly cut off by a knock on the door, followed by a series of taps, indicating that Itachi had left Kakuzu at the door.

"Enter!" Pein boomed.

"What do you require of me, Leader-sama?" Kakuzu sweated.

He knew that gambling was bad. He knew that gambling often resulted in him getting bankrupt. If it wasn't for the fact that it had potentially been able to double their finances, he wouldn't have done it. And his finger itched, his oft-wrong gambling sense tingled, and he lost everything. He was prepared to fight Pein to the death before dying, probably broken, but by the fact that the Pein in front of him only had two bodies, perhaps he wouldn't die... yet.

The hooded Pein spoke. "For that mistake, you shall learn your lesson. Tsukyoumi."

Kakuzu's mind could only register the impossibility that the Rinnegan could also use the Mangekyou Sharigan's technique before his world exploded in pain. Beneath that haze of red and unbridled agony, he heard a sinister voice sneer. "71 hours, 59 minutes, and 59 seconds left. May you never forget the sensation of being drowned by casino chips."

His mind barely registered that it was impossible to drown in something solid before the veritable Tsunami swamped him again, crushing him beneath the weight.

* * *

"What are you doing Zabuza-sama!" Haku shrieked, as she saw her mentor, her master, attempt to pick up a water jug.

"Is it a crime to want for a glass of water?" Zabuza levelled her a glare.

"But your hands..." Haku murmured.

Zabuza's glare faltered for a second. "I must admit, this has been most frustrating. But nevertheless, I'm an ex-ANBU. I am not a hapless little wimp uncapable of daily duties, Haku-chan."

"Indeed, Zabuza-sama. I just fear for your well-being." Haku bowed. "I apologize if I have done anything out of my..."

"I understand, Haku." Zabuza sighed. "I just couldn't take being helpless."

"I... I met the boy who hurt you in the woods, Zabuza-sama." Haku muttered. "His name is Uzumaki Naruto."

"Uzumaki, you say." Zabuza chuckled. "No wonder he has that..."

"What 'that', Zabuza-sama?" Haku queried.

"The 'that' isn't anything like a Kekkei Genkai. It's more of their bodies being able to handle ridiculous amounts of chakra without bursting." Zabuza chuckled. "You know that technique he used on me?"

"Hai?"

"He overloaded it five times over." Zabuza laughed, his scratchy laughter echoing around the room. "You remember what happened when you overload a technique with chakra?"

"Indeed, Zabuza-sama." Haku nodded. There had been once where their prey had attempted a last ditch effort, and his hand blew up grossly from the excess of chakra being concentrated.

"What did I tell you then?" Zabuza turned to the table.

"He overloaded the technique t... twice over." Haku gasped in revelation.

"And the boy overloaded that technique FIVE times over." Zabuza emphasised. "Don't take him for a green Genin."

"Hai, Zabuza-sama." Haku nodded, retreating out of the room to grind the medicine.

"AND FOR THE LAST TIME, STOP CALLING ME -SAMA!" Zabuza roared, much to the amusement of the giggling Haku.

"Yes, Zabuza-sama." Haku bursted into peals of unrestrained laughter, while Zabuza raged in the room.

* * *

Hyuuga Hiashi settled himself comfortably behind his table, taking his time to purview the paperwork that littered the table. Frowning slightly, he took out a pen and started doing some paperwork mechanically, having mastered both doing paperwork and thinking about other things a long time ago, where his father had somehow gotten 'The Heir must do as much paperwork as he can as a child to help him in the future' into his head. He perfected the art.

_So... The Uzumaki a Tokubetsu Jounin, huh? His father is Namikaze Minato. And as for his mother, I don't know, so perhaps there might be other benefits from his mother's side that I'm not aware of yet. Since he's the last of the Namikaze, I could gun for the Clan Restoration Rights for him, along with the Clan Restoration Rules, and the Rule of the Shodai. Then I can suggest either Hinata or Hanabi... No, Hanabi's probably too young. So Hinata, then. Well, it seems that he might have the hots for the Yuuhi... This might just put the proverbial spanner in my plans... Nah, the CRR enables him to take more than five wives, with four as a bare minimum. So... _Hiashi's mind whirred at breakneck speed. _What's more, Hinata has some like for him, and the Uzumaki's a rather rare kind of boy, a way better match than what the rest of the Council perceives. _At this, Hiashi couldn't help but to clench his fist. _And can't the stupid idiots get into their brain that NO Hyuuga is going to be married to that UCHIHA. The day the Hyuuga Clan combines with the Uchiha Clan is the day we elect Uchiha Itachi as the Godaime.  
_

* * *

Said Uchiha survivor sneezed. Unfortunately for him, he was in the middle of yelling out a Katon jutsu, and it screwed his handseals up. End result? Instead of fire from his mouth, the _poor_ Uchiha launched a Great Fireball from his ass.

End of Chapter 10.

A/N : I forgot to mention that Hinata, despite what Hiashi may think, is not going to be in the harem. I have **_plans_**.


	12. Chapter 11 : Wave,First Assault

Chapter Eleven : Wave/First Assault

Hyuuga Neji stalked past his room, face set in stone. He had passed by Hiashi's office, and the cackle the man had wasn't doing wonders for his heart. He strained his ears, and he was able to pick up 'Uzumaki' and 'Hinata', along with something called 'CRA' and 'You da man'. The last freaked him out. Hyuuga's didn't use phrases like that. Who was that Uzumaki brat to change the normally stoic and emotionless Hyuuga Hiashi to such a... carefree and loose person...? _No matter. These eyes of mine will see right through it. It's how things are, and will be. You may prove to be a challenge yet, Uzumaki Naruto. Do not lose... No. Fate has decided that you will not lose, till you meet me in battle.  
_

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke was irritated, grouchy, and generally twitchy. Add that with a particularly loud pink banshee, along with a loud-mouthed Inuzuka didn't help matters. That, and a consistently late Jounin sensei, who generally left them to their own devices made him particularly volatile. He _WAS, IS, and WILL BE_ an Uchiha. He should be receiving one on one training, not waiting for the weak to catch up! The Jounin taught them tree walking, gave his signature eye smile, before disappearing somewhere to read his smut. He was an Uchiha, the elite. The ultimate. The nobles. Despite what the Hyuugas might, and may think, they were, always, will be, and eternally be inferior. _He _was an _Uchiha_.

"Alright alright..." Kakashi drawled, lazily, eye never leaving his book of smut. "We'll have some theory lessons today."

"What?" Sasuke snapped.

"You didn't hear me?" Kakashi would have gawked, and acted out a mock show, but he couldn't be bothered to. "I said 'Alright alright... We'll have some theory lessons today.' Or perhaps we should head to the hospital so Sasuke can get his ears checked... A deaf nin is a dead nin... Well, most of the time, but..."

"What theory." Sasuke growled, cutting his Jounin Sensei's incoherent ramblings.

"Well, just so you know, there are the Chuunin Exams approaching in a few months time, and I thought I'll go through some of the basics again!" Kakashi's eye crinkled, amusement flicking in his eyes, barely hidden.

Sasuke would have groaned, but the Uchiha's didn't groan. _No matter. If this village will not allow me to grow, then so be it. There're other trees in the forest, after all._

_And then, let them fall at my feet as they seek to have me back._

He gave a smirk that didn't escape Kakashi's eyes. _Itachi... Wait for me._

* * *

Sakura seriously didn't know what to do. Sasuke was getting more and more estranged from them, if his frosty attitude was any indication. Her Sasuke-kun was powerful, and he grew day by day, and to her, his growth was unparalleled. He _WAS_ Sasuke, after all. So why was he so... upset? So... so... frustrated?

Sometimes, she felt tired of trying to figure the enigma that was Uchiha Sasuke. Was he really that worth it? Another look at the Uchiha cemented her originally quavering ambition.

* * *

Kiba gave his usual stupid smile, the mask he hid under to bring out the normally suppressed emotions the Uchiha possessed. Seriously, that guy either had 'Angst' and 'Emo' as his emotions. It seemed that stupidity brought about the other emotions. Stupidity, and only stupidity. And so Kiba provided.

Uchiha Sasuke, as unwilling Kiba was, was already part of the pack. And pack members stood for each other. And so it was, and so it will be.

* * *

Hatake Kakashi gave his self confident smirk. While 'ditching' them and leaving them to their own devices wasn't exactly a good teaching method, it encouraged interaction. OR rather, it should. The Uchiha preferred to work alone, and the Haruno just camped on a tree and stared longingly at the Uchiha, and the Inuzuka trained. The Inuzuka tried to work with them, oh yes, but it failed. Inuzuka Kiba will be getting his push in advancing to Chuunin from Kakashi, that much he was sure of.

The last training was the proverbial smash that broke the camel's back. Right now, he had to ditch the style of individual learning, and FORCE them, by the Sharigan if necessary, to train together. Perhaps a binding jutsu with him attaching chains to their wrists and ankles for a week would help foster friendly bonds. Or even, shoving them into a broom closet and locking it, before barricading it with a couple of Doton jutsus would do the job. They sure did it for his team.

Kakashi gave himself a pat on the back, and gave his team a disturbing grin. _After the talk... And some popcorn with it. _

* * *

Nara Shikamaru sighed, as he leaned on a wall. Raising his head, he observed the ever-changing sky with his eyes. He sighs, only to turn around as a torrent of words from a blonde exploded into his ears. "Troublesome..."

He groaned again as the kunoichi positively exploded. He was supposed to be still lazing around bed, instead of hearing Ino screech, damn it! His mind swivelled to other matters, tuning out the kunoichi and generally inciting another rant from her. Uchiha Sasuke. The sole Uchiha survivor. Shikamaru didn't know what to think of the Uchiha. On one hand, he was a fine shinobi, definitely destined for great things. On the other... His thirst for revenge was probably more than sufficient for him to think about betraying the Leaf if he thought he could obtain more power elsewhere.

Then the enigma, Uzumaki Naruto. That boy had to be of some relation with the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato. Their surnames might be different, yes, but look at their faces. He had once, as a child, doodled on a book. What he didn't expect when he flipped out his old books again for nolstagia's sake was to think '_What's a grown up Naruto doing in this old book?' _Then he realised that he had doodled on the Yondaime's picture. His mind had whirred, and his head hurt from thinking too much. His father had just chuckled and told him not to tell anyone else when he thrusted the book in Shikaku's face.

And as for his mother... He didn't want to have anything to do with that troublesome woman so early in the morning.

His sensei came, and he shoved these unnecessary thoughts out of his mind, getting ready for another round of shogi.

* * *

Ino seriously didn't know what to do. Uchiha Sasuke had been steadily gotten moodier and grumpier by each week, and she felt for Sakura every single time the pink haired kunoichi got rejected by the Uchiha. Contracy to common belief, she didn't love the Uchiha. The false image had worn off the first time Naruto beat Sasuke up, as though Sasuke was a mere fresh academy student. She had however, chose to remain a Sasuke Fangirl, solely because it gave the forehead girl more confidence. After all, she might as well help her all the way, instead of just halfway.

Ino decided that she best get her head out of this subject and scream at Shikamaru. She had a reputation to uphold, after all.

* * *

Sarutobi Juzou frowned. Right in front of him was one of Jiraiya's reports, and what it entailed didn't please him. The Oto-Suna alliance hadn't been finalized, but what it meant was that Suna was no longer their ally. He crushed the paper with his hand, and with a quick Katon jutsu, got rid of the sensitive information. _What are you planning... Orochimaru._

Standing from his swivel chair, the Sandaime crossed the short length to the window quickly. Placing a wizened hand on the cool window, Sarutobi peered outside. It was sunny. And he will ensure, come hell or whatever, it remained so. He was the Sandaime Hokage, and it was his duty.

Sarutobi took a puff from his pipe. His breath came out ragged, fogging the glass slightly. _I guess I should start training now, eh, Saru old boy?_

The Sandaime's hands blazed through handseals, before they were slammed on the ground. "Ninpou : Dai Kage Bushin!"

* * *

Jiraiya giggled perversely. Right in front of him was an absolutely heavenly sight. As heavenly as it could get, that is, with most of it's heavy hitters gone, like Senju Tsunade, Yuuhi Kurenai, and Uzuki Yuugao. The Mitarashi had been there in the morning, so he had missed her. Then the next sight almost made him wonder if he was peeping on the wrong side of the fence, till realisation hit him. Literally.

Screeching, the Haruno matriach screamed for her fellow clanswomen to bash the pervert up.

_I still thought I was peeping on the man's section. Thank kami._ Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief as he ran away. _It's just the flat clan._

He winked at his informant, who had slipped him his information while he was being pummelled.

(A/N : There, I gave a purpose, or rather, another purpose to Jiraiya's perversity. No one's going to suspect a man being pummelled with righteous fury gaining information at the same time. Well, besides the information about how being a pervert didn't pay.)

* * *

Kakuzu panted. "Who're fuck are you!?" He snarled, black threads snaking out of his skin.

The masked man gave a grin. "My name is Uchiha Madara."

Kakuzu's eyes widened.

"Tsukyoumi." Madara gave a sadistic grin.

"Madara-sama, is there a need to risk permenantly damaging Kakuzu?" Pein drawled.

"No one will know of my identity, except for a few of you. Kakuzu has to regain my trust for me to unlock this memory." Madara snarled. "Know your place, Nagato."

"Hai, Madara-sama."

* * *

ANBU Team 3 seated themselves. Not on proper chairs, with some seating on the walls, and even one on the ceiling. The Captain just settled to seat himself on the floor. Team Kurenai were seated in a circle around the man, with a map prominently displayed right in front of them, weighed down at the corners with kunai. Marks were scrawled in an apparently lazy drawl all around the map, with red cross marks indicating a bandit camp, and a single blue cross indicated their location. There was a orange cross where the bridge was, and a black mark on the town.

Tenzou tapped a kunai on the nearest bandit camp, bringing the focus of the Genin to the spot. "When we were coming, I received info that the five camps are merging and separated into two, which are-" Here, Tenzou took out a pink piece of chalk, and marked two spots on the map. "There are 5 nukenin to a camp, and we know that Zabuza and his assistant are operating independently." Here, a question mark was drawn.

"We know that Zabuza and his assistant is temporarily out, so we have to bring down the two camps as quickly as possible." Tenzou replied. "And Zabuza leaved us a period of only 1 more day, so We'll have to split and attack both at once. Me and Buta, along with Hinata and Shino will take on the first camp, while you guys take the other. We'll move out at... it's 12 00 Hours now, so we'll move at 12 30 Hours. Go and pack, and prepare yourselves. We go on the dot."

The shinobis dispersed.

* * *

"Neko, and Okami, I need a word with you." Tenzou spoke, emerging behind the two ANBU.

"You may see several things during the fight from the Uzumaki." Tenzou muttered. "Don't let it get to you."

"Like, err..." Neko rubbed the back of her head. "What?"

"A sudden rise in killing intent, and _THAT_ feeling." Tenzou replied. "If rumours were any indication, the boy utterly hates those types. And there's definitely an abundance of those people in those camps."

"Then shouldn't you be with him, Taichou?" Okami replied tersely. "Only you can control the bijuu."

"The Kyuubi is on our side." Tenzou smirked. "Sandaime-sama has assured me, and have given me sufficient evidence for me to have full confidence in his words."

"Very well, Taichou." Neko nodded. "If it's good enough for you, it's good enough for us. By your leave."

The three disappeared in a plume of smoke.

* * *

"Danzou-sama." A masked figure bowed, standing right in front of a rather wizened man.

"Dispense with formalities, Sai." The man dismissed the gesture with a wave of his sole arm. "Report."

"Mission completed. Saruho has perished, however." Sai intoned emotionlessly.

"Very well. I'll assign Kuroha to your team, then." Danzou replied. "Take a week to recuperate, then report back. On your way out, tell Tanu I want to meet him."

"Hai, Danzou-sama." Sai bowed.

"Now, Sarutobi-kun..." Danzou gave a deep chuckle. "The pieces are set, and the die is cast. Your move, old monkey."

* * *

"So... Are you guys ready?" Tenzou smirked, hands on his hips. Not that they could see his smirk under his mask, but the amusement was evident in his voice.

"Indeed." Shino nodded, while Buta seemed to be acting in mock hurt that Tenzou would suggest that _THEY_ weren't ready.

"I'm hurt, Ten-kun!" Buta gasped, clutching his hands to his heart. "I'm hurt!"

"Oh shut up Bu-teme!" Okami roared, punching his teammate. Said teammate flew through the canopy, crashing into a tree, and by the sound of yelps and the fact that many birds flew, said tree had crashed. And out of the forest burst an enraged Buta, who proceeded to kick Okami.

"You know, if we could get a move on?" Neko snarled, gripping both teammates by their collars and forcing a particularly scary Neko aura into their faces.

"Ah, um, yeah." Buta squeaked nervously.

* * *

Hyuuga Hiashi, the Clan Head of the Hyuugas, sat down behind his simple oak desk with a glass mat and a cup of lightly steaming green tea in his hands. In his other hand, was a thick and dusty tome, inscribed on the dull scarlet cover were wordings long faded from the weathers. _Goddamn idiots couldn't bother to get a new book. _Hiashi grumbled. _As soon as I finish this I'm tossing out this antique Konoha Law Book and getting a new one._

Placing the heavy tome on the protesting desk, he flipped the pages quickly, already having memorized the table of contents. Of course, he could, but he couldn't be bothered to memorize the book itself. The slightly yellowed page was blank. Manipulating his chakra with the inhumane control _born _to the Hyuuga head (Sometimes he couldn't help but sigh at the stupid elders) and channelled the oddly moving chakra into the page. Words spread from contact, waves of words flowing from his fingertip, setting into the page, and with a slight greenish glow, the ink set into the page and it was open for purview, without the risk of it disappearing without chakra being supplied constantly.

The page glowed slightly, sticking it's pages down till required. _Nidaime's Law_. Hiashi chuckled. _As ruled by the Nidaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato... Bleh, boring political stuff. _Grimacing slightly, he paced over to his sparse bookshelf and picked a slightly smaller tome. _'Guidebook to Political Lingo.' Those stupid elders will have a field day if they know this book was here... _

_Nidaime's Law._

_As per Nidaime's rule. _Hiashi snorted at this, and he whirred around cautiously after catching himself and activating the security seals he managed to blackmail the late Namikaze into doing for him.

_Simply put, any person who is the last of a great clan or a possessor of a kekkei genkai used to fall immediately in the CRA group, and there were several concerns and arguements, and this lead to the creation of the Nidaime's Law... Like anyone reading the book wants to know the history behind it. _Hiashi groaned. The thrice-damned... Okay, the idiots who had authored the books had been damned for more than a hundred times by him already, but, who the hell would want to bother with... that dry, morbid history. Who cared that it took 5 council meetings to iron all bugs out, for the Sandaime's sake!

Well, the Sandaime _MIGHT_ care, being the _Professor_ and all that.

_In simple terms, the rule allows any person in possession of ONE, and ONLY ONE kekkei genkai to refuse being placed in CRA, and if the person has obtained prior permission and well wishes from their Clan Head, with the Clan Head fully understanding that if the person is the only one left, he or she has no obligation besides personally to continue the existence of the clan. However, any one with TWO, or MORE kekkei genkai, and is the sole scion of TWO, or MORE great clans, he or she is obligated both personally and legally to extend the existance of the clan. _

_Well, being that dear blond gaki is probably both the progenator of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans... Fufufufufu..._

"You da man, Hiashi!" In a burst of characteristically out of place cheer, Hiashi attempted to slap himself on his back.

* * *

"Alright, so there's about one thousand bandits and rounin per camp, along with 5 C to B ranked nukenin..." Okami tapped the side of his mouth. "The camp's split into three sections, as we can see."

Peering over the foilage, Naruto could make out the distinct boundaries of the camp. The camp was indeed divided into three. There was a circle in the centre, the training posts and shinobi gear hanging outside to dry on lines attached to said posts indicating that it was the 'Headquarters', and to the left were the bandits, and to the right, the rounins. Said rounins were already up and training, while most bandits were lazing about, fingering weapons, or even dozing on the ground. There was the distinct odour of something aweful, something he hated. Uzumaki Naruto's eyes glazed over with a cold metallic glint.

"Kill, or be killed." Neko spoke. "Don't freeze, Uzumaki. God speed."

Naruto levelled a chilling glare at the ANBU.

"I know."

Although Okami will never admit it, even to his deathbed, the cold metallic look in the boy's eye chilled him to the core. No child, not even what most called the demon brat should have those eyes... Those of Elite Jounins. Those of ANBU.

Those eyes of a seasoned killer.

Those cold, cold unyielding eyes.

Those eyes of cold metal.

"Go."

* * *

Naruto leapt off the branch, weight seals off, and Qi and Chakra rushing through his systems, boosting his power to the limit, yet not reaching the higher limit, that of the Hachimon.

He disappeared in a burst of sheer speed.

* * *

Kurenai, Okami, and Neko gasped, as suddenly, Naruto was there, then the next moment, he was gone. There was no noise, no disturbance. The dirt was still soft, springy, as though nothing had been on it before. It was speed, undulated speed, at it's purest form.

"Holy shit." Neko groaned.

"Indeed." Okami agreed.

"What in the..." Kurenai blubbered.

* * *

Blood splattered on the ground, and the sentry toppled, the sole sign of an intruder the glint of a kunai in the sun, and the gaping wound on the neck.

* * *

What the Jounins saw wasn't a camp. It was a carnival of war, and the Uzumaki was singing the song of death. The hymn of war. The ballad of slaughter.

It was then, Kurenai understood. Uzumaki Naruto wasn't a Genin. He wasn't a blank slate of metal, ready to be forged, to be hammered, to be heated, then hammered again. He was already a well forged katana. His Hamon glinted like a Masamune, singing both the song of death and life.

(A/N : Masamune's a famous swordsmith, reputedly the best. Even better than Murasama. Google for more details.)

The B-Ranked nukenins fell, quickly, and easily, caught unawares. What it took, were two senbon from Naruto, and two basic ANBU Chakra Fangs Neko carried. The speed which bodies fell seemed to increase after Naruto saw the captives. He snapped, and along with his lost control he brought along half the camp in a supercharged Doton : Yomi Numa. The other half were treated to the fear Konoha felt when the Kyuubi attack.

Neko, Okami, and Kurenai found themselves hardpressed to ignore the sheer amounts of Killing Intent Naruto outputted. Even without being in eye contact, they could feel as though Shikumi no Jutsu (Death Viewing Technique) was being used. And judging by the bandits and rounin attempting to claw their eyes out as the three killed them emotionlessly, a quick senbon to the spine, a chop to the neck, and a kunai across the throat, and by the grateful looks the rounin and bandits were sending them, Naruto had a certain creativity in terms of dealing death. Morbid creativity, yes, but still, creativity was creativity.

Naruto stood in front of a group of self confident bandits, who barely shook the effects of the indirect Shikumi no Jutsu off. By the scent on them, Naruto recognized them as one of the worse kinds of people. Rapists probably had nothing on these men. He snarled, his elongated canines glinting.

He disappeared, leaving behind an after image, and landed softly on the other end. The bandits had surprised looks, as though unbelieving of the boy's pure speed, and the boy not even harming them. One turned to laugh.

Then, appendages fell, and blood splattered.

* * *

Haku watched with morbid horror. It was strangely surreal, in it's own way.

The black jumpsuit was torn, tattered, and chafted in several places. Blood was splattered on it, and several spots looked like it had been burnt. Red chakra, glowing a bright crimson, flowed around the boy's body. Three red chakra tails swayed freely in the wind, just behind the blond, not bubbling, but moving more like water, and wisps escaped intermittently.

The eyes, cold, tired. Not dull, and not vibrant either. There was something there that just scared her. It didn't burn. It didn't blaze. It just was, and it scared her. It was the look her master sometimes had. The look he had repeatedly said he didn't want to wish on her.

The look of cold metal.

The boy had single handedly eliminated more than half of the camp with no visible remorse or guilt.

And then, there were those Konoha ANBU. Her eyes narrowed.

Her master must know.

She tried to leap away, only to find out that she too, was being affected by his Shikumi. She tried to leap away, but when the boy levelled his glare on where she was, Haku was fully aware of how she would be horribly dismembered if she crossed him. She was frozen on the spot, behind her more than supposedly-adequate cover, from the concentrated beam of Killing Intent. She never did could think of how the boy could manage to catch those extremely minute details as though they were in plain sight.

"Tell Zabuza," Naruto snarled. "If he persists on attempting to kill Tazuna, he WILL die."

"H...hai." Haku stuttered.

"Go." Naruto turned his glare towards a bunch of quavering bandits, and disappeared in a burst of sheer speed.

(A/N : Complains about Naruto being overpowered will be directed to the Kyuubi and her tails.)

* * *

Tenzou tensed. He had detected the tremendous surge of youki, and if the sight he had seen was any indication, he knew exactly what made Naruto flare up. Sighing, he went through a series of seals, before slamming his hands on the ground. "Mokuton : Tajuu Yari!"

The thousand spears rose from the ground, catching plenty of bandits and rounin unawares. "Alright, here we go!" Buta cheered, as he unleashed a plethora of Raiton jutsu into the panicking crowd.

"How did he even survive..." Shino intoned, mutely amused by the rather loud and cheery ANBU.

"Luck?" Tenzou offered, shrugging.

"Luck indeed." Shino groaned.

Hinata executed a Jyuuken strike to one bandit's head, causing his brains to implode, blood dribbling down his orifices. "Ano... We should get going, shouldn't we?"

"Ah, indeed." Tenzou nodded. "Let's go."

"Die, scum." Shino scowled slightly.

(A/N : Some may ask why both/either Hinata/Shino doesn't suffer a breakdown from all the deaths going on around them? They're from shinobi clans. I would think that their clans would prepare them for their eventual kill already. And what did Naruto and the rest see to be this enraged? MA stuff. Clear enough, I hope.)

* * *

-One Day ago-

Gatou strolled freely down HIS base, his short stature commanding tremendous respect, and he observed with mute amusement and satisfaction as the employees scrambled to get out of his way, several bowing down to him. A quick snap brought his retainer to him. "Organize a trip to one of those camps." Gatou grunted. "I want to inspect them."

"It will be done, Gatou-sama." The man bowed. "Everything will be ready by tomorrow."

"This evening." Gatou snapped.

"This evening it is, Gatou-sama." The man bowed again.

"Good." Gatou smirked. "I expect everything to be in tip top condition when I come back, or..." He left the threat hanging.

"Hai, Gatou-sama!" The workers squeaked.

* * *

Gatou gasped as he took in the widespread destruction. "ABOUT TURN!" He squeaked. "LEAVE THIS PLACE NOW!"

"I'm afraid, Gatou-sama, that I can't do that." His retainer drawled. "It's a one way only trip."

Gatou paled.

End of Chapter 11.

* * *

Story Idea : What might have been. (Most likely not gonna be done. If you want, take it.)

Namikaze Minato stood, hands clutching a bundle of cloth, where a tuft of bright yellow hair peeked out. The Yondaime Hokage sighed, and he tossed a tri pronged kunai out of the window. "Before I'm the Yondaime Hokage, I'm a shinobi. And before a shinobi, a human. And before a human, a father. Forgive me, Konoha."

And with that, the Yondaime Hokage disappeared in a yellow flash.

* * *

A/N : Review answering corner (This only occurs when I think it deserves to.)

CW stated _One thing I'm concerned about is the overuse of 'the clan restoration act' by authors. You cannot restore a bloodline from only one set of genes. Every child only has 1/2, from then on 1/4 etc. I haven't seen every episode so I don't know if the clan restoration act is canon or not, but like the 'harem' I see it as getting old fast._

Well, the CRA is not canon, but since I only read the manga I'm not too sure about the anime, since it's full of fillers. And about restoring the bloodline, look at it this way. _ Every child only has 1/2, from then on 1/4 etc._ This signifies that there's still a chance the bloodline will activate, and by the fact that the Uchiha clan does not seem as adverse to marrying out of the clan as the Hyuuga's, but I'm not too sure about that, since the Uchihas ALL DIED.

And on the same note, uhh, in the last chapter, it was the Uchiha SURVIVOR, namely, Uchiha Sasuke, who farted fire.

That was dumb, I know, but it sounded priceless when the idea jumped me in the shower. Which, as a side note, made me hit the cold water valve and I got splashed by extremely cold water. Meh. .

Back on the topic. The CRR is mainly due to the severly optimistic thought of the Council, that if there was a chance, they were going to take it. I was planning to save the Rule of the Shodai for a later chapter, but I think I'll integrate it in the next.

Shinteo-5 stated _Just a suggestion. keep your A/N to the top or bottom of the fic. It is... irritating to see something that breaks the flow of the story._

Well, I do do that normally. I just include them since it's WAY less annoying than leaving a mark and asking the reader to scroll all the way down to understand. I'll try to lessen the A/N, however.

And a PS. The Shodai is called the Shodai, not the Shodaime. Senju Hashirama is the 初代 火影, or if you can't see the kanji, or it got erased, he's the Shodai Hokage. Unless his official title has 目 after 初代, meaning he's the 初代目 火影, then can he be called the Shodaime Hokage. And of course, he doesn't have it. 目 supposedly means the continuation of a 'legacy', but hey, I don't know Japanese, so bite me.

Lesson Learnt ? Senju Hashirama is the Shodai, not Shodaime. Have nice day.


End file.
